Author Topic: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, Mueller, Durham, Mar a Lago and related matters  (Read 202796 times)

DougMacG

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #200 on: July 13, 2017, 09:18:49 AM »
If Trump had a true political pro in the position Donald Jr was in when this happened, (some say) this wouldn't have happened.  A true pro would have smelled a rat, recognized false claims, not written 'I love it' to the offer and shook out the opposition research they needed without leaving an embarrassing trail full of land mines.  At the time this happened, there was no Russia stole it narrative, but a true political pro would have steered around that anyway.

But if Trump had surrounded himself with only political professionals and always listened to them, he wouldn't have been the nominee or won the election.

If there had been a big collusion conspiracy strategy in place with Putin at the top of the Trump campaign to steal the election, one of these 3 people would have known about it.  DT Jr would have carefully steered this request to those channels, not set up a meeting and a paper trail.  Not this way:
"Mr. Goldstone publicly checked into Trump Tower on Facebook during the meeting, which isn’t how a KGB man would normally conceal the handoff of state secrets."

Interesting to see what heroic lengths the Obama administration and the Loretta Lynch Justice Department went through to enable this particular meeting, in the context that the phony Dossier earlier was DNC inspired (peeing on the bed?!) and all of it broken through the same, irresponsible newspaper.

The longer this story goes on, the worse the derangement side looks.  cf. Tim Kaine.

G M, previously in this thread:  "according to confidential government records described to The New York Times.
 rolleyes
So, were these records created when Obama ordered the president elect spied upon?"

Worse yet, maybe it was all set up by DNC / Obama administration operatives.  It looks that way:

ccp

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #201 on: July 13, 2017, 10:02:20 AM »
"Worse yet, maybe it was all set up by DNC / Obama administration operatives.  It looks that way:"

That would explain why after losing the election the Dems *immediately* went all guns blazing about some Russia connection and the rest.....


They had thought of this long before early November.   The whole machine made this their story from day ONE.

G M

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #202 on: July 13, 2017, 10:43:34 AM »
Third post:

A major progressive friend cites this hard to read page https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2017/7/9/1679290/-Abramson-connects-the-dots-collusion-is-certain-and-Trump-knew

and summarizes it thus:

==============================================

To summarize the collusion (the individual pieces are now out there and this is my belief about how it all came together):

- Trump's clan was contacted by his friends in Russia once it was clear that he would win the Republican Party nomination.

- Russia knew it would be unlikely Trump would win but believed it could test out its information warfare capabilities, which it had been bragging about in open conferences in Russia but now needed a test case on the international stage (the low price of oil has gutted the Russian economy and the oligarchs have stolen hundreds of billions from the Russian people without punishment, so cyber warfare rather than physical warfare are now their game).

- Trump's people, not actually believing they could win, took the bait and started meetings as far back as April to see how hey might get help from the country that has been funding Trump's poorly performing businesses (via DeutcheBank as the paper processor).

- In characteristic fashion, the Russians mount a full court press, meeting with a half dozen or more people involved in the campaign and built strong roots with people who were already US citizens acting as foreign agents (Manafort, et al).

- Russia promised a whole slew of support which was all discussed in all the meetings with the Russians--from Sessions to Manafort to Carter Page, to Don Jr's meetings--and included discussions of how the Trump camp could feed Russia information that Russia could use for micro targeting through Facebook (which has been proven).

- These meetings and discussions entangle the Trump campaign in a way that, even if the campaign wanted to get out, were stuck (proof is in how Flynn was brought in as national security advisor, in a giant coup for the Russians, proving to them that their entanglement works at the highest levels).

- The lack of cloaking is so evident that Trump gets on stage in early June 2016, 4 days after the meeting with Don Jr and the other cronies he brags that he is going to reveal a whole bunch of Clinton dirt! It was planned, it was orchestrated and colluded upon, no question about it.

- Russia knew that if their information warfare techniques could actually shift the election, with the recordings the Russians had on Trump's people, they owned the entire group and could see their bought and sold Trump people all the way into the White House (both to have morons who would repeal the sanctions but also to fundamentally destabilize the world and the US leadership role, which have now already happened in only a few months, and not even with Trump needing to be told what to do!).

- Trump was so highly undesirable that only an information warfare approach in the key districts (the now legendary 77,000 votes) created the painful secret anti-Clinton vote that allowed those districts to flip red and the Electoral College to go for Trump despite a massive popular vote win for Clinton (this was all aided by the stupid overconfidence of Clinton by not anticipating the flipping and not playing as dirty as Trump-Russia).

- When Trump can't seem to lose by saying the most extraordinary things, the Russians double-down on true fake news (Clinton running a sex ring...etc.) and find that people continue to believe it. In fact more than 75% of the Facebook impressions during the campaign were for fake rather than real news, affecting 15 million people, more than enough to sway 77,000 votes in key districts.

- When journalists (thank g-d) started penetrating the strange new world and leakers (thank g-d) started leaking at the greatest levels ever seen, we got to see a picture of exactly what a purchased, compromised executive branch looks like--state attorney generals who were promised a job but who were investigating Russian ties being fired, compromised people like Flynn being pushed in, firings of Comey who were close to the truth, and now the unstoppable cascade of new revelations coming out.

We will look back on this day and say, my g-d, it was all right there in front of us but too surreal to believe. From the likes of Michael Crichton or John Le Carré novels, this is real. The Russians have created the most powerful bioweapon: our own self-loathing and gullibility.

Believe.



He needs meds. Especially for the upcoming sadness when reality again frustrates their impeachment fantasies.


rickn

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #203 on: July 13, 2017, 11:06:04 AM »
The Russia interference scenario is a corollary of the "Manafort is a Russian dupe" scenario that was directed at Trump beginning in May or June 2016. 

This was their pre-emptive strike against the Clinton Foundation and the uranium deal argument that they knew would be an issue in the campaign.  As well as a pre-emptive strike against the Podesta was phished problem.  If the Dems could blame that whole debacle on sophisticated Russian spies instead of Podesta falling for an obvious phishing scheme, then they can escape responsibility for their own failures.

If you recall, the anti-Trump Repub's and the Dem's went all in against Trump because Manafort had previously consulted for the preferred Russian political leader in Ukraine.  This is why Ukraine operatives tried to help Clinton in the 2016 election.  The argument went something like this: because Manafort had once consulted for pro-Russian politician, ergo Trump must be pro-Putin.

Then, the AZ airport meeting between Lynch and Bill Clinton was revealed.

Then, Comey held his first press conference at which he announced that he would recommend against not indicting Hillary over her email issues, but during which he made serious allegations against Hillary's email security.
 
The Mnafort line of attack stopped working after the Trump campaign replaced Manafort with Bannon and Conway.

http://www.politico.com/story/2016/08/paul-manafort-resigns-from-trump-campaign-227197

Afterwards, when it became clear that Wikileaks had obtained Podesta's emails and would be releasing them, the Dem's began to shift the emphasis of this towards Russian hackers having illegally obtained these emails.

The shift in Dem talking points also occurred about the same time, August 2016, when Obama first learned of Russian attempts "to interfere in the election."

And, today, we learn that it was Sen. McCain who first sought to use the fake dossier on Trump. 




Crafty_Dog

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Clapper and Morell's analysis
« Reply #206 on: July 13, 2017, 03:14:45 PM »


https://www.thecipherbrief.com/article/exclusive/clapper-trump-jr-emails-only-one-anecdote-much-larger-story-1091

This makes sense to me:

“What I find striking — and alarming — is less that these senior Trump officials stepped over the ethical line, but that they don’t seem to even understand that such a line exists,” Morell said.


G M

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Re: Clapper and Morell's analysis
« Reply #207 on: July 13, 2017, 07:10:47 PM »





https://www.thecipherbrief.com/article/exclusive/clapper-trump-jr-emails-only-one-anecdote-much-larger-story-1091

This makes sense to me:

“What I find striking — and alarming — is less that these senior Trump officials stepped over the ethical line, but that they don’t seem to even understand that such a line exists,” Morell said.



http://www.politico.com/blogs/under-the-radar/2011/02/dni-clapper-retreats-from-secular-claim-on-muslim-brotherhood-033259

Director of National Intelligence James Clapper is backing away from comments he made Thursday calling Egypt's branch of the Muslim Brotherhood movement "largely secular."

https://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2016-11-17/lawmakers-resume-calls-for-james-clapper-perjury-charges



Some lawmakers reacted to the long-expected resignation announcement from Director of National Intelligence James Clapper on Thursday by wishing him an eventful retirement, featuring prosecution and possible prison time.

The passage of more than three years hasn’t cooled the insistence in certain quarters that Clapper face charges for an admittedly false statement to Congress in March 2013, when he responded, “No, sir" and "not wittingly” to a question about whether the National Security Agency was collecting “any type of data at all” on millions of Americans.

About three months after making that claim, documents leaked by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden revealed the answer was untruthful and that the NSA was in fact collecting in bulk domestic call records, along with various internet communications.

To his critics, Clapper lied under oath, a crime that threatens effective oversight of the executive branch. In an apology letter to lawmakers, however, Clapper said he gave the “clearly erroneous” answer because he “simply didn’t think of” the call-record collection.

Crafty_Dog

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #208 on: July 13, 2017, 08:12:33 PM »
A timely reminder.

Still, this remains:

"“What I find striking — and alarming — is less that these senior Trump officials stepped over the ethical line, but that they don’t seem to even understand that such a line exists,” Morell said."

G M

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #209 on: July 13, 2017, 08:23:28 PM »
A timely reminder.

Still, this remains:

"“What I find striking — and alarming — is less that these senior Trump officials stepped over the ethical line, but that they don’t seem to even understand that such a line exists,” Morell said."


What ethical line is this? This is all bullshiite. You need to stop giving the MSM/Dems/deep state gaslighting memes credit. Both Clapper and Morrell have the credibility of a methamphetamine addict car thief.

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/05/opinion/campaign-stops/i-ran-the-cia-now-im-endorsing-hillary-clinton.html?mtrref=en.wikipedia.org&gwh=C453C850BC21F7FF8F179DC8F7A94E52&gwt=pay&assetType=opinion

« Last Edit: July 13, 2017, 08:26:38 PM by G M »

Crafty_Dog

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DougMacG

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Re: Caveat Lector: Peter Smith suicide
« Reply #211 on: July 14, 2017, 05:29:47 AM »
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/politics/ct-peter-smith-death-met-0713-20170713-story.html

Plenty of reasons to be suspicious.  A hotel used almost exclusively for Mayo clinic patients is probably not where you find cases of untreated depression.  I don't understand the role of the helium or how people learn or decide best way  :-( to commit suicide.  Maybe it gives him comfort breathing something as the oxygen disappears.  Did he buy the helium himself?  Did he research that method online in his own browser history?

Even if genuine suicide, this adds to the enormous trail of dead bodies along the Clinton path.  From the article: 

"For years, former Democratic President Bill Clinton was Smith's target. The wealthy businessman had a hand in exposing the "Troopergate" allegations about Bill Clinton's sex life. And he discussed financing a probe of a 1969 trip Bill Clinton took while in college to the Soviet Union, according to Salon magazine.'

Are there any Clinton scandal researchers still alive.  Whoever killed him is probably asking that question too.

ccp

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #212 on: July 14, 2017, 05:38:48 AM »
life insurance policies probably do pay even in case of suicide though there may be a 2 yr delay in payment.

that said the whole thing sounds weird


DougMacG

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Re: Clapper and Morell's analysis
« Reply #213 on: July 14, 2017, 06:37:51 AM »
“What I find striking — and alarming — is less that these senior Trump officials stepped over the ethical line, but that they don’t seem to even understand that such a line exists,”

Peggy Noonan wrote:
[Not criminal, not collusion] "It was worse, it was classless."


This lacks context.  I have to check the timeline for what was known when, but this woman (HRC) was running a criminal enterprise out of the US state department, selling favors, collecting money, and a significant part of that happened in and with Russia.  She had at times a 90% chance of becoming President.  The only person who could stop that was whoever won the R nomination, turned out to be Trump.  As opposed to unethical, to DT Jr, stopping her and electing his father was quite patriotic, and opposition research or dirt on the opponent is a known, legal and accepted part of that.  A lot of her dirty work was in dirty places overseas.  That is where a legitimate break in the campaign might come from.  In this case it led to nothing.

Everyone who tries to get a meeting with someone important touts themselves as important, with ties to people high up for example if they are unknown themselves.  The claim of ties to the government or its intentions is just noise on the page to a Presidential nominee's gatekeeper.  It might be true; it might not be true.  We have no reason to believe DT Jr believed any of it, just that he agreed to listen.

Further context is that Trump's predecessor won a foreign policy debate against Romney on the idea 1) that Russia is not a threat, "The 1980s called and wants their foreign policy back."  And 2) he won on the idea that he talk to anyone, even Iran, the world's number one state sponsor of terror.  'Can't hurt to talk to them'.  Wrong as that is, that view was accepted and prevailed.

This might be bad behavior if they received and used ill-gotten information, but there was none. 

A 'crime' could have been non-disclosure but it was disclosed.

And most of all, quid pro quo, a favor or advantage granted or expected in return for something, and there was none.

No quid.  No pro.  No quo.  Just. bait and switch.

Trumps classless?  'ya think?

The class they were seeking was Presidential victory and the lines they shouldn't cross are legal ones.  It's not an under-regulated business.  One legal line never mentioned is freedom of speech which I take to include DT Jr's freedom to listen.  This meeting happened in the US, but there is no law against picking up the phone and talking to Russia.  There is no law against meeting with them, far as I know.  But if you plot or commit a crime during the call, the email or the meeting, that is a different matter.  Once again we are nationally neck deep into a 'scandal' and no one can tell us what the crime is that was committed.  So it's classless, unethical.  I disagree, but even if it was, bfd.  Big F'ing Deal.

Meanwhile, federal spending just hit $400B/month.  In all the wrong places.  yawn. shrug shoulders. no outrage there.

ccp

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #214 on: July 14, 2017, 08:24:18 AM »
"Peggy Noonan wrote:
[Not criminal, not collusion] "It was worse, it was classless."

What bothers me is the rinos almost in unison turning on Trump.

The Krystals the Krauthammers the Noonans and the rest of many of the establishment types.

I  don't think Jrs seeking dirt on Hillary is classless at all.  Not one iota.  It was smart.  He would have been a fool a sucker if they didn't pursue this. 
however I wish he was smarter about it : leaving emails like ,  "I love it"
or that he simply disclosed the meeting  up front.

WE here all know crats would have done EXACTLY the same thing,  have done the exact same (think Ed Kennedy - Russia) though most likley they would have been wiser about going about it.

G M

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Re: Caveat Lector: Peter Smith suicide
« Reply #215 on: July 14, 2017, 08:34:18 AM »
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/politics/ct-peter-smith-death-met-0713-20170713-story.html

Plenty of reasons to be suspicious.  A hotel used almost exclusively for Mayo clinic patients is probably not where you find cases of untreated depression.  I don't understand the role of the helium or how people learn or decide best way  :-( to commit suicide.  Maybe it gives him comfort breathing something as the oxygen disappears.  Did he buy the helium himself?  Did he research that method online in his own browser history?

Even if genuine suicide, this adds to the enormous trail of dead bodies along the Clinton path.  From the article: 

"For years, former Democratic President Bill Clinton was Smith's target. The wealthy businessman had a hand in exposing the "Troopergate" allegations about Bill Clinton's sex life. And he discussed financing a probe of a 1969 trip Bill Clinton took while in college to the Soviet Union, according to Salon magazine.'

Are there any Clinton scandal researchers still alive.  Whoever killed him is probably asking that question too.

I saw the term "Arkancide" used. Struck me as funny. In a very dark sort of way.

rickn

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #216 on: July 15, 2017, 04:41:52 AM »
This pseudo-scandal is beyond laughable.

So, now, the big deal is that other Russian lobbyists and an interpreter accompanied the lawyer.  But the meeting was with the lawyer and the lawyer did all of the talking through an interpreter.

According to another lobbyist who was in the Russian "delegation",  the lawyer claimed to have information showing a flow of illicit funds from Russia to the DNC.  Trump Jr then asks her whether she has evidence to back up her claim including proof of the actual flow of money.  The lawyer then replied that the Trump campaign would have to research it more.

http://apnews.com/dceed1008d8f45afb314aca65797762a/Russian-American-lobbyist-says-he-was-in-Trump-son's-meeting

At this point, Trump Jr lost interest.  Kushner left the room.  The lawyer pivots to bring up the real reason she was there - to lobby for repeal of the Magnitsky Act so that Putin would rescind restrictions on Americans adopting Russian children.  Trump Jr ends the meeting after a total of 20-30 minutes.

In other words, in reality, Trump, Jr. decided not to work with "the Russians."

ccp

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pseudo-scandal - agree but
« Reply #217 on: July 15, 2017, 06:41:51 AM »
"This pseudo-scandal is beyond laughable" yes I agree but

I would be laughing too if it were not for the persistent and damaging *political*  headlines that  gives the LEFT media DNC legal hollywood victim constituent complex leverage to work this to stop Trumps' agenda

We see how this has already  worked to demoralize Republicans , further damage Trump's support among them, and contribute  to keeping him and the feckless legislatures from being able to do anything.   Although the legislatures would probably not be getting anything done anyway.

Trump will survive this (at this point) but the endless use of this pseudo-scandal  to keep words like "treason, collusion, crook, illegitimate , stolen election and the rest" in the headlines as well as giving CNN , rightly or wrongly , more confidence to keep up their 24/7 attacks on Trump...............

rickn

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #218 on: July 15, 2017, 08:09:59 AM »
It turns out that "the Russians" who met with Trump Jr., are also connected to Fusion GPS, the company that commissioned the fake British dossier.

http://www.redstate.com/streiff/2017/07/14/shocker.-wont-believe-employed-former-soviet-counterintelligence-official-trump-meeting/

Trump, Jr. declined to collude with these Russians and declined their "help" against Hillary.  Shortly afterwards, a dossier of alleged Trump Sr. indiscretions began to circulate.  And Senator McCain was somehow linked to requesting this info.  In addition, this dossier gets to the FBI and Comey.

Fusion GPS is at the center of all of these "collusions." 






ccp

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #219 on: July 15, 2017, 08:48:27 AM »
"And Senator McCain was somehow linked to requesting this info."


Certainly one asks the question as is being done in some circles:

was this whole thing a set up from day one?

McCain always available, willing and able, as a darling of the left and its media, comes through for them again, and proves what an idiot he is  (the word "useful" [to the enemy left] can be tacked on to the word "idiot" but it is no longer necessary - he is just an *idiot*!)

« Last Edit: July 15, 2017, 08:51:23 AM by ccp »

ccp

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Dershowitz on Judge Jeanine !
« Reply #220 on: July 17, 2017, 04:22:04 AM »

DougMacG

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This secret conspiracy swept undetected by journalism across 29 states.  A true story as the word collusion has come to have a valid use even when nothing criminal took place.

https://babylonbee.com/news/cnn-report-millions-american-voters-may-colluded-elect-trump/

CNN Report: Millions Of American Voters May Have Colluded To Elect Trump
July 13, 2017
Share on Facebook Tweet on Twitter 

U.S.—A new, exclusive CNN investigative report revealed Thursday that millions of American voters may have potentially colluded with the Trump campaign to elect Donald Trump as President of the United States.

While Russia has been accused of interfering in the election, the breaking report indicates that the collusion may have extended to a significant portion of the U.S. population—“as many as 60 million citizens, and possibly even more.”

“The conspiracy goes much deeper than anyone expected,” Jake Tapper said on his news segment The Politics Lead. “We’re talking tens of millions of people involved in this secret plot to make sure Hillary didn’t make it into the White House and to prop up Donald Trump as the winner.”

The CNN report does not accuse anyone of hacking or rigging the vote, but rather suggests that those colluding with the real estate mogul in the far-reaching scheme may have simply walked into voting booths and cast their vote for Donald Trump, giving him the electoral college victory.

“It’s far more sinister than we thought,” a visibly disturbed Tapper said.

Crafty_Dog

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former Russian intel officer at the meeting worked for US State Dept.
« Reply #222 on: July 17, 2017, 09:48:18 PM »
This is Breitbart so let's double check this, but it appears that the former Russian intel officer at the meeting along with the Russian lawyer with Donnie of whom the Pravdas trumpet was

a) a double citizen of US and Russia (how does a former Russian intel guy get US citizenship?), and

, , , drum roll , , ,

b) had worked as an interpreter for Hillary's State Department:

http://www.breitbart.com/jerusalem/2017/07/17/new-york-times-omits-clinton-state-department-link-trump-jr-meeting/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=daily&utm_content=links&utm_campaign=20170717


Crafty_Dog

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WaPo: Russki ambassador says Sessions discussed campaign with him
« Reply #223 on: July 21, 2017, 06:37:04 PM »
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/sessions-discussed-trump-campaign-related-matters-with-russian-ambassador-us-intelligence-intercepts-show/2017/07/21/3e704692-6e44-11e7-9c15-177740635e83_story.html?utm_term=.3930cd8ca097


This reads article REALLY badly.  DO NOTE the incongruity of the headline and this within the body:

"Officials emphasized that the information contradicting Sessions comes from U.S. intelligence on Kislyak’s communications with the Kremlin, and acknowledged that the Russian ambassador could have mischaracterized or exaggerated the nature of his interactions.

“Obviously I cannot comment on the reliability of what anonymous sources describe in a wholly uncorroborated intelligence intercept that the Washington Post has not seen and that has not been provided to me,” said Sarah Isgur Flores, a Justice Department spokeswoman in a statement. She reiterated that Sessions did not discuss interference in the election."

AGAIN, on the whole this article reads quite devastatingly.

Russian and other foreign diplomats in Washington and elsewhere have been known, at times, to report false or misleading information to bolster their standing with their superiors or to confuse U.S. intelligence agencies."
« Last Edit: July 21, 2017, 06:39:03 PM by Crafty_Dog »

ccp

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Andrew McCarthy
« Reply #224 on: July 22, 2017, 07:13:45 AM »
"  President Trump accomplished only one thing by railing at Attorney General Sessions: He added to the growing disinclination of quality people to work in his administration. No one with self-respect wants to work in a place where the boss not only won’t back you up when the going gets tough, but will turn on you with a vengeance — especially when there’s a need to divert attention from his own shortcomings.

Whether we’re talking about the shoddy behavior that intensified calls for a special counsel or about the selection of the officials who made the key decisions that have armed the special counsel with limitless jurisdiction, the president has only himself to blame. "

http://www.nationalreview.com/article/449743/donald-trump-jeff-sessions-president-blame-mueller-affair

As Doug says impeachment would not happen unless the Right gives in............. :|

ccp

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Tom Delay
« Reply #225 on: July 22, 2017, 07:32:24 AM »
He is the guy who could get things done in the House.  We need someone like him back.  Ryan is a loser.

http://www.newsmax.com/Newsmax-Tv/attorney-general-recusal-investigation-Tom-DeLay/2017/07/20/id/802914/
« Last Edit: July 22, 2017, 07:34:14 AM by ccp »


Crafty_Dog

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« Last Edit: July 22, 2017, 01:01:51 PM by Crafty_Dog »


Crafty_Dog

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Morris: Did Trump make a concession to Putin at G20 on adoptions?
« Reply #229 on: July 22, 2017, 01:42:00 PM »
Did Trump Make A Big Concession To Putin At G20?
By DICK MORRIS
Published on DickMorris.com on July 21, 2017
At the recent G20 meeting in Hamburg this month, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin met on the side with President Trump for what they called an "informal" fifteen minute session.  Press reports indicate that they discussed "adoptions."

Presumably, this refers to the Russian ban on American adoptions of Russian infants that was enacted in 2012 to retaliate against the United States for new sanctions imposed by the Congress on Russians.  The sanctions, called the Magnitsky Act, were voted to punish individual Russians who were complicit in the jailhouse murder of Sergei Magnitsky, a lawyer who was arrested after exposing hundreds of millions of dollars of corruption by Putin.
 
At the time of the adoption ban, Russia was the third most popular country for infant adoptions with almost 1,000 adoptions each year.

Putin wants the Magnitsky Act repealed by Congress.  Human rights activist Bill Browder wants them extended to 280 new Russians who he says were complicit in the persecution, arrest, and murder of Sergei Magnitsky or in the corruption he exposed.

To say that they discussed "adoptions" is a euphemism for the fact that they likely talked about repealing the Magnitsky Act.  Because Magnitsky's charges of corruption were personally leveled at Putin and perhaps because he might have been involved in the murder, the Russian leader has pushed hard for it repeal.

The push to weaken the Magnitsky Act interfaces with the charges that Trump and Putin conspired to fix the U.S. election.  The Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya and her countryman, lobbyist Rinat Akhmetshin, both were hired as lobbyists for a Foundation pushing for repeal of the Magnitsky Act.  And they were also both present at the now famous meeting with Trump's son and also raised the issue of "adoptions" with him.

To add to the mix, Fusion GPS, the negative research firm that hired former British spy Christopher Steele to dig up dirt on Trump, also worked to lobby against the Magnitsky Act.

So, we are driven to ask the question:  Did Trump promise Putin to weaken -- or at least not expand -- the Magnitsky Act?

The fact that Putin's lobbyists raised the Magnitsky Act with Trump Jr. and now that the dictator himself brought it up with the president, shows how important the question is to Putin personally.   If Trump relented and gave in to Putin on the issue, it is a very big deal indeed.

The media, so far, has not penetrated beyond the description of the meeting as being about "adoptions" to get at the real issue beneath.

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Re: Morris: Did Trump make a concession to Putin at G20 on adoptions?
« Reply #230 on: July 22, 2017, 02:28:16 PM »
Ok, my eyes are glazing over. Russian adoptions? Who exactly gives a rat's ass?

Did Trump Make A Big Concession To Putin At G20?
By DICK MORRIS
Published on DickMorris.com on July 21, 2017
At the recent G20 meeting in Hamburg this month, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin met on the side with President Trump for what they called an "informal" fifteen minute session.  Press reports indicate that they discussed "adoptions."

Presumably, this refers to the Russian ban on American adoptions of Russian infants that was enacted in 2012 to retaliate against the United States for new sanctions imposed by the Congress on Russians.  The sanctions, called the Magnitsky Act, were voted to punish individual Russians who were complicit in the jailhouse murder of Sergei Magnitsky, a lawyer who was arrested after exposing hundreds of millions of dollars of corruption by Putin.
 
At the time of the adoption ban, Russia was the third most popular country for infant adoptions with almost 1,000 adoptions each year.

Putin wants the Magnitsky Act repealed by Congress.  Human rights activist Bill Browder wants them extended to 280 new Russians who he says were complicit in the persecution, arrest, and murder of Sergei Magnitsky or in the corruption he exposed.

To say that they discussed "adoptions" is a euphemism for the fact that they likely talked about repealing the Magnitsky Act.  Because Magnitsky's charges of corruption were personally leveled at Putin and perhaps because he might have been involved in the murder, the Russian leader has pushed hard for it repeal.

The push to weaken the Magnitsky Act interfaces with the charges that Trump and Putin conspired to fix the U.S. election.  The Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya and her countryman, lobbyist Rinat Akhmetshin, both were hired as lobbyists for a Foundation pushing for repeal of the Magnitsky Act.  And they were also both present at the now famous meeting with Trump's son and also raised the issue of "adoptions" with him.

To add to the mix, Fusion GPS, the negative research firm that hired former British spy Christopher Steele to dig up dirt on Trump, also worked to lobby against the Magnitsky Act.

So, we are driven to ask the question:  Did Trump promise Putin to weaken -- or at least not expand -- the Magnitsky Act?

The fact that Putin's lobbyists raised the Magnitsky Act with Trump Jr. and now that the dictator himself brought it up with the president, shows how important the question is to Putin personally.   If Trump relented and gave in to Putin on the issue, it is a very big deal indeed.

The media, so far, has not penetrated beyond the description of the meeting as being about "adoptions" to get at the real issue beneath.



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Trump Needs To Be Smart About How He Fires Mueller
« Reply #233 on: July 26, 2017, 08:12:50 AM »
https://townhall.com/columnists/kurtschlichter/2017/07/24/trump-needs-to-be-smart-about-how-he-fires-mueller-n2358768

Trump Needs To Be Smart About How He Fires Mueller
Kurt Schlichter |Posted: Jul 24, 2017 12:01 AM 


 

Trump must eventually fire Robert Mueller, a partisan tool carrying water for his Establishment pals as he oversees an utterly corrupt “investigation” where the only person we actually know committed any wrongdoing is his bestest buddy Jim Comey. But Trump can’t just lash out and do it, though it is well within his political and moral right to do so. No, he’s got to do it cleverly, with cunning, in a way that shows the American people exactly why Mueller’s witch hunt is a flaming dumpster fire of conflicts of interest and contempt for the right of normal Americans to have a say in their own governance.

Trump has to set the stage before he pulls the trigger and puts the coup de grace into the temple of this appalling fiasco. He has to do it so the American people will see and understand why ending this idiocy is so absolutely necessary to preserve our Republic despite the mainstream media’s best effort to hide the truth.

Trump needs to seize the initiative from Leaky Bob. You know, I keep hearing how Mueller was this squared-away Marine officer, but through these incessant leaks his organization demonstrates a complete lack of both integrity and discipline. Mueller seems unwilling or unable to exercise any kind of leadership over his team of Hillary donors, or to instill a culture of seriousness and impartiality. The continuing misconduct of his out-of-control, ever-expanding fiefdom demonstrates that he must be relieved of command. And here’s the letter the president should send to him to set the stage to do it.

Robert Mueller

Special Counsel

United States Department of Justice

Dear Mr. Mueller:

 I write in my capacity as the President, and to you in your capacity as a subordinate executive branch officer.

[This is where the president clarifies who works for whom – and whom the American people elected. Hint: It wasn’t the Menschian Suddenly-Aware-That-Russia-Is-Bad Gang.]

 You were appointed to investigate the baseless and politically motivated claims of collusion with Russia. While I am frustrated at the partisan innuendo and improper leaks, I respect this process. Yet these false claims have interfered with my administration’s ability to deliver on the promises I made to the tens of millions of Americans who voted for me last November.

[This is where the President makes clear that he will not let these bogus charges derail the policies the American people voted for. You establishment creeps want to go back to business as usual? Win an election. Your coup fantasies? Not happening.]

 It is important for me to tell you and the American people, who will read this letter since I intend to make it public, that nothing here seeks to impugn your integrity. You served your country honorably as a Marine overseas and in various roles at home.


[Of course, Trump must tweet out this letter, and it must be distributed far and wide by the skillful and smooth Anthony Scaramucci so that voters can read it themselves and not have to rely on the CNN/NYT/MSNBC/WaPo Lie Machine’s spin.]

 But several troubling matters related to your investigation have arisen, so I am directing you to provide me a written explanation regarding the following matters no later than noon three days hence. I intend to release your response to the public, which must have full confidence in your investigation if it is to put to rest these baseless allegations.

[Shift the paradigm! Mr. President, this guy works for you. He owes you – and the American people – an explanation!]

1. 28 CFR 45.2 (”Disqualification arising from personal or political relationship”) bars participation in any investigation involving a personal friend. You are a long-time, close personal friend and mentor of James Comey. He is the source of allegations against me that leaks from your team that indicate that you are investigating. Please explain why you contend that 28 C.F.R. 45.2 does not apply to you based upon your close personal friendship with Mr. Comey. Please explain how your close friendship with this accuser will not undermine the American people’s confidence in the impartiality and fairness of your investigation.


[I was just discussing with one of my very, very prominent lawyer buddies how this whole thing stinks and would never be tolerated in the normal legal world. Any American is going to understand that you don’t appoint the pal of the “victim” to investigate the “crime.”]

2. Federal Election Commission filings show the political donations made by your staff, including donations of the maximum amount allowed by law, are overwhelmingly directed toward the Democratic Party. [Insert here a list of them and their Hillary payoffs so the people can see just how outrageous this really is.] Please explain why 28 C.F.R. 45.2 does not apply to your staff based on their demonstrated partisan preference for liberal Democrats who oppose my administration. Please explain how it happens that none of your staff appears to have primarily donated to Republicans – nor any of them to my candidacy despite the fact about 45% of American voters voted for me.


[Seriously. What the hell? The American people need to hear loudly and clearly that Mueller is picking members of the Felonia von Pantsuit fraternity for his metastasizing mob – and they’ll ask “Why?” Mueller cannot give a good explanation because there isn’t one.]

3. On June 14, 2017, the news media reported a leak from inside your investigation to the effect that I was personally the subject of an investigation for “obstruction of justice.” This leak was widely perceived as a bureaucratic maneuver designed to prevent me from exercising my prerogative under the Constitution of relieving you, a subordinate executive branch officer, of your duties. Recently, there were leaks about you unilaterally further expanding the probe beyond the bogus Russian collusion claims to my personal financial matters from a decade ago. Fairly or not, these shameful betrayals of your confidence by members of your team (assuming the media is accurate, which is questionable) portray you as using the kind of tactics that resulted in my mandate to “drain the swamp.” And these endless leaks are especially troubling in light of Mr. Comey’s admission that he leaked information to manipulate the special counsel process, while hiding from the American people the fact that I was never under investigation for collusion with Russia.

[Time to remind people that Mueller is not leading a group of dedicated professionals pursuing the truth but a liberal agenda-driven, undisciplined band of Hillary hacks who are just another set of Washington insiders playing the same old political games.]

 If these leaks are accurate, please explain the steps you are taking to identify who on your team violated your trust and the trust of the American people. If the leaks are not true, please unequivocally state that fact. Please also explain the steps you are taking to ensure that your staff will act professionally and with integrity in the future in order to regain the American people’s confidence in the impartiality and fairness of your investigation.

[Boom. Put it back on Mr. Integrity™ to explain what he plans to do to restore some professionalism to the circle of jerks that is his team.]

 This matter must be resolved quickly and completely, in a manner which all Americans see as absolutely impartial and fair. I am directing your public response to this letter both in fairness to you, because you deserve a chance to answer these concerns, and for the American people, who have questions that require answers.

[So you wanna play this out in the media? Okay. Except now you can’t do it from in hiding using whispers and lies. Time to stand up and be held accountable instead of talking smack via cowardly gossip through friendly liberal media catamites.]

 And the American people deserve those answers soon, because they deserve an executive branch that can devote its full efforts to the agenda the people voted for. I am confident you share my determination that this not become another endless, expensive, and ultimately meaningless exercise in Washington gamesmanship. Accordingly, unless additional time, not to exceed 30 days, is granted upon a showing of good cause, I direct you to present your written findings by October 31, 2017. At that point, your appointment as Special Counsel will expire and any remaining matters requiring further investigation will continue to be investigated via normal Department of Justice investigatory channels.

[Set a fuse and light it. This charade cannot go on endlessly, so don’t let it.]

Donald J. Trump

President of the United States

[A useful reminder that he is the duly-elected President, and all the haters, liberal liars, and media hacks are not.]

Mueller has to go, sooner or later, but the President must first set the stage and make sure the American people understand exactly how much of an utter scam this whole thing is before he acts. Impeachment – the ultimate goal of Mueller/Comey and their liberal establishment string-pullers – is a political act. To pull off their unbelievably dangerous and destructive coup, the establishment needs to get a bunch of Republicans and the House and Senate to go along. Some of the RINOs are itching to, but they are cowards and they can be controlled by fear of voter backlash. By appealing to the people and making his case to them, the President will ensure that the people will tell their elected representatives, “Oh, hell no.” And the coup will sputter then peter out in pathetic failure, much like a Fredocon watching Cinemax at midnight without his Viagra.

Sad!

But Trump can’t act before he makes the case. Sure, the media will empty its bowels in horror at this letter and scream about “intimidation” and “interference,” but normal people will read it and ask “Yeah, why is this guy investigating claims made by his friend? That sounds unfair. And how come Mueller is appointing all Democrat Hillarybots? That’s not right.”

So, when Mueller refuses to follow the reasonable order of his elected superior to explain his outrageous conflicts of interest, Trump will be able to toss him and his band of hacks into the Schumer can. Yeah, the media will melt down, but normal Americans will shrug, and Trump will continue doing the job we elected him to do.


ccp

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #234 on: July 26, 2017, 08:23:54 AM »
Rush Limbaugh spoke of this exact Kurt Schlichter article yesterday

But since when has Trump been smart about firing anyone ?

Fed up in NJ

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #235 on: July 26, 2017, 08:26:35 AM »
Rush Limbaugh spoke of this exact Kurt Schlichter article yesterday

But since when has Trump been smart about firing anyone ?

Fed up in NJ

This is the problem.

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #236 on: July 26, 2017, 09:12:26 AM »
In addition to all the donations by his team, there is also the attorney who represented Hillary against FOIA requests.  IMHO, this communicates Mueller's intent even stronger than donations.
 

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #237 on: July 26, 2017, 11:17:54 AM »
"  IMHO, this communicates Mueller's intent even stronger than donations. "

What does anyone make of belt way Repubs coming out and saying they have the upmost respect for Mueller when ever they get approached about all these Clinon Obma lawyers being hired?

Such as Paul Ryano

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #238 on: July 26, 2017, 12:18:06 PM »
That as usual they are grabbed by the pussy.

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WSJ
« Reply #240 on: July 26, 2017, 01:33:00 PM »
Some additional thoughts:

a) Trump explicitly ran on prosecuting Hillary;

b) He went against this promise after the election; therefore unfair to Sessions to criticize him for failure to prosecute now;

c) Sessions is doing excellent Trumpism work on MS-13 and illegal immigration

d) In my opinion, Sessions has performed badly on the legal issues surrounding the six Muslim country moratorium (ban)

e) Who would replace?  Who could be approved?  Giuliani?  Nope, he supports Sessions recusal and would be much weaker on illegals.

The WSJ makes some powerful points here:


By The Editorial Board
July 25, 2017 7:54 p.m. ET
1479 COMMENTS

Donald Trump won’t let even success intrude on his presidential ego, so naturally he couldn’t let the Senate’s health-care victory stand as the story of Tuesday. Instead he continued to demean Jeff Sessions, and in the process he is harming himself, alienating allies, and crossing dangerous legal and political lines.

For a week President Trump has waged an unseemly campaign against his own Attorney General, telling the New York Times he wished he’d never hired him, unleashing a tweet storm that has accused Mr. Sessions of being “beleaguered” and “weak.”

Mr. Trump is clearly frustrated that the Russia collusion story is engulfing his own family. But that frustration has now taken a darker turn. This humiliation campaign is clearly aimed at forcing a Sessions resignation. Any Cabinet appointee serves at a President’s pleasure, but the deeply troubling aspect of this exercise is Mr. Trump’s hardly veiled intention: the commencement of a criminal prosecution of Hillary Clinton by the Department of Justice and the firing of special prosecutor Robert Mueller.

On Tuesday morning Mr. Trump tweeted that Mr. Sessions “has taken a very weak position on Hillary Clinton crimes. ” This might play well with the red-meat crowd in Mr. Trump’s Twitterverse, but Sen. Lindsey Graham was explicit and correct in describing the legal line Mr. Trump had crossed.

“Prosecutorial decisions should be based on applying facts to the law without hint of political motivation,” Sen. Graham said. “To do otherwise is to run away from the long-standing American tradition of separating the law from politics regardless of party.” Republican Sen. Thom Tillis also came to Mr. Sessions’ defense, citing his “unwavering commitment to the rule of law,” and Sen. Richard Shelby called him “a man of integrity.”

We will put the problem more bluntly. Mr. Trump’s suggestion that his Attorney General prosecute his defeated opponent is the kind of crude political retribution one expects in Erdogan’s Turkey or Duterte’s Philippines.

Mr. Sessions had no way of knowing when he accepted the AG job that the Russia probe would become the firestorm it has, or that his belated memory of brief, public meetings with the Russian ambassador in 2016 would require his recusal from supervising the probe. He was right to step back once the facts were out, not the least to shelter the Trump Administration from any suspicion of a politicized investigation.

If Mr. Trump wants someone to blame for the existence of Special Counsel Robert Mueller, he can pick up a mirror. That open-ended probe is the direct result of Mr. Trump’s decision to fire FBI Director James Comey months into his Russia investigation and then tweet that Mr. Comey should hope there are no Oval Office tapes of their meeting. That threat forced Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to appoint a special counsel.

As a candidate, Mr. Trump thought he could say anything and get away with it, and most often he did. A sitting President is not a one-man show. He needs allies in politics and allies to govern. Mr. Trump’s treatment of Jeff Sessions makes clear that he will desert both at peril to his Presidency.

No matter how powerful the office of the Presidency, it needs department leaders to execute policy. If by firing or forcing out Jeff Sessions Mr. Trump makes clear that his highest priority is executing personal political desires or whims, he will invite resignations from his first-rate Cabinet and only political hacks will stand in to replace them. And forget about Senate confirmation of his next AG.

Even on the day that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was scraping together enough Republican votes to avoid a humiliating defeat for the President on health care, Mr. Trump was causing Senators to publicly align themselves with Mr. Sessions. Past some point of political erosion, Mr. Trump’s legislative agenda will become impossible to accomplish. Mr. Trump prides himself as a man above political convention, but there are some conventions he can’t ignore without destroying his Presidency.
« Last Edit: July 26, 2017, 01:34:46 PM by Crafty_Dog »

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WSJ: GPS Unregistered Russian agent?
« Reply #241 on: July 26, 2017, 02:43:39 PM »
Second post:


By James Freeman
July 26, 2017 4:55 p.m. ET
180 COMMENTS

Democrats are now promising Americans a “better deal,” but it will be hard to stop talking about the deal that voters rejected last November. Today The Hill reports:

    Hillary Clinton’s upcoming book will double down on Russia’s interference and James Comey’s involvement in her stunning election defeat, according to sources familiar with the memoir.

    Privately, Clinton has told friends and longtime associates that she “wants the whole story out there” as she rushes to tweak and put the finishing touches on the book due out in September.

And if there’s one thing that Hillary Clinton is known for, it’s getting the whole story out there. But readers interested in this subject won’t have to wait until September to learn more. A witness expected to testify at Thursday’s rescheduled hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee may shed some light on Russian interference in the 2016 election, though perhaps not in the way Mrs. Clinton might have hoped.

William Browder, an American-born investor and onetime cheerleader for Russia’s economic potential, has for years been among Vladimir Putin’s most effective opponents. Ever since his Russian investment fund was ripped off and his Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky was murdered, Mr. Browder has been shining a light on Russian corruption. He succeeded in persuading Congress and President Obama to enact the Magnitsky Act in 2012 to sanction Russia’s human-rights abusers.

In Mr. Browder’s prepared testimony for Senate Judiciary, he accuses a network of Beltway influence peddlers of disseminating Russian propaganda in an effort to persuade U.S. lawmakers to repeal the Magnitsky Act. According to Mr. Browder:

    While they were conducting these operations in Washington, DC, at no time did they indicate that they were acting on behalf of Russian government interests nor did they file disclosures under the Foreign Agent Registration Act.

    United States law is very explicit that those acting on behalf of foreign governments and their interests must register under FARA so that there is transparency about their interests and their motives.

Mr. Browder says that a leader of the anti-Magnitsky campaign was Natalia Veselnitskaya, who recently became famous for trying to make this case to Donald Trump, Jr. in a meeting last summer. Also relevant to the 2016 campaign, Mr. Browder says:

    Veselnitskaya, through Baker Hostetler, hired Glenn Simpson of the firm Fusion GPS to conduct a smear campaign against me and Sergei Magnitsky in advance of congressional hearings on the Global Magnitsky Act. He contacted a number of major newspapers and other publications to spread false information that Sergei Magnitsky was not murdered, was not a whistle-blower and was instead a criminal. They also spread false information that my presentations to lawmakers around the world were untrue.

So the same firm that generated rumors about the Russians having damaging information on President Trump—a project funded by Mr. Trump’s American political opponents, according to the Washington Post’s Josh Rogin—was also working for the Russians?

Fox News describes the reaction today of Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley (R., Iowa):

    “Mr. Simpson’s company, Fusion GPS, is the same firm that oversaw the creation of the unverified Trump Dossier,” Grassley said in his opening statement. “It is vital for the Committee to fully understand Fusion’s failure to register under FARA and its role in the creating and spreading of the dossier...There are public reports that the FBI used the dossier to kickstart its Russia investigation—Did the FBI know that Fusion pitched Russian propaganda for another client as it pushed the Trump dossier?”

This column asked Fusion GPS to comment on Mr. Browder’s prepared testimony and received this response:

    Let’s be clear about what’s really happening: The President’s political allies are targeting Fusion GPS because the firm was reported to be the first to raise the alarm over Trump campaign’s links to Russia.

That may be true, but it’s not a denial of anything in Mr. Browder’s prepared testimony. Speaking of which, as readers make judgments about the character of various players in this drama, they might want to review Mr. Browder’s account of what happened to Sergei Magnitsky after he blew the whistle on corruption and was imprisoned because he would not withdraw his sworn testimony against Russian officials:

They put him in cells with no heat and no windowpanes and he nearly froze to death. They put him in cells with no toilet, just a hole in the floor and sewage bubbling up...He developed severe abdominal pains, he lost 40 pounds, and he was diagnosed with pancreatitis and gallstones and prescribed an operation for August 2009. However, the operation never occurred. A week before he was due to have surgery, he was moved to a maximum security prison called Butyrka, which is considered to be one of the harshest prisons in Russia. Most significantly for Sergei there were no medical facilities there to treat his medical conditions.

    At Butyrka his health completely broke down. He was in agonizing pain. He and his lawyers wrote 20 desperate requests for medical attention, filing them with every branch of the Russian criminal justice system. All of those requests were either ignored or explicitly denied in writing.

    After more than three months of untreated pancreatitis and gallstones, Sergei Magnitsky went into critical condition. The Butyrka authorities did not want to have responsibility for him, so they put him in an ambulance and sent him to another prison that had medical facilities. But when he arrived there, instead of putting him in the emergency room they put him in an isolation cell, chained him to a bed, and eight riot guards came in and beat him with rubber batons.

    That night he was found dead on the cell floor.

ccp

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Trump looks a tad like Mussolini
« Reply #242 on: July 26, 2017, 02:50:13 PM »
""   Donald Trump won’t let even success intrude on his presidential ego,  ""

There is an old clip of Mussolini nodding his head with a facial expression of his own self importance.  Trump last night with his self important facial epxressions reminded me of that look on Mussolini.  Not that Trumps policies are Mussolini's (of course not )  but the ego....................


Here it is .  Imagine the orange hair :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOv-Ncs7vQk
« Last Edit: July 26, 2017, 03:13:44 PM by ccp »



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WSJ: Strassel: Who paid for The Trump Dossier?
« Reply #245 on: July 28, 2017, 03:24:28 AM »
 By Kimberley A. Strassel
July 27, 2017 6:09 p.m. ET
336 COMMENTS

It has been 10 days since Democrats received the glorious news that Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley would require Donald Trump Jr. and Paul Manafort to explain their meeting with Russian operators at Trump Tower last year. The left was salivating at the prospect of watching two Trump insiders being grilled about Russian “collusion” under the klieg lights.

Yet Democrats now have meekly and noiselessly retreated, agreeing to let both men speak to the committee in private. Why would they so suddenly be willing to let go of this moment of political opportunity?

Fusion GPS. That’s the oppo-research outfit behind the infamous and discredited “Trump dossier,” ginned up by a former British spook. Fusion co-founder Glenn Simpson also was supposed to testify at the Grassley hearing, where he might have been asked in public to reveal who hired him to put together the hit job on Mr. Trump, which was based largely on anonymous Russian sources. Turns out Democrats are willing to give up just about anything—including their Manafort moment—to protect Mr. Simpson from having to answer that question.


What if, all this time, Washington and the media have had the Russia collusion story backward? What if it wasn’t the Trump campaign playing footsie with the Vladimir Putin regime, but Democrats? The more we learn about Fusion, the more this seems a possibility.

We know Fusion is a for-hire political outfit, paid to dig up dirt on targets. This column first outed Fusion in 2012, detailing its efforts to tar a Mitt Romney donor. At the time Fusion insisted that the donor was “a legitimate subject of public records research.”

Mr. Grassley’s call for testimony has uncovered more such stories. Thor Halvorssen, a prominent human-rights activist, has submitted sworn testimony outlining a Fusion attempt to undercut his investigation of Venezuelan corruption. Mr. Halvorssen claims Fusion “devised smear campaigns, prepared dossiers containing false information,” and “carefully placed slanderous news items” to malign him and his activity.

William Browder, a banker who has worked to expose Mr. Putin’s crimes, testified to the Grassley committee on Thursday that he was the target of a similar campaign, saying that Fusion “spread false information” about him and his efforts. Fusion has admitted it was hired by a law firm representing a Russian company called Prevezon.

   
Prevezon employed one of the Russian operators who were at Trump Tower last year. The other Russian who attended that meeting, Rinat Akhmetshin, is a former Soviet counterintelligence officer. He has acknowledged in court documents that he makes his career out of opposition research, the same work Fusion does. And that he’s often hired by Kremlin-connected Russians to smear opponents.

We know that at the exact time Fusion was working with the Russians, the firm had also hired a former British spy, Christopher Steele, to dig up dirt on Mr. Trump. Mr. Steele compiled his material, according to his memos, based on allegations from unnamed Kremlin insiders and other Russians. Many of the claims sound eerily similar to the sort of “oppo” Mr. Akhmetshin peddled.

We know that Mr. Simpson is tight with Democrats. His current attorney, Joshua Levy, used to work in Congress as counsel to no less than Chuck Schumer. We know from a Grassley letter that Fusion has in the past sheltered its clients’ true identities by filtering money through law firms or shell companies (Bean LLC and Kernel LLC).

Word is Mr. Simpson has made clear he will appear for a voluntary committee interview only if he is not specifically asked who hired him to dig dirt on Mr. Trump. Democrats are going to the mat for him over that demand. Those on the Judiciary Committee pointedly did not sign letters in which Mr. Grassley demanded that Fusion reveal who hired it.

Here’s a thought: What if it was the Democratic National Committee or Hillary Clinton’s campaign? What if that money flowed from a political entity on the left, to a private law firm, to Fusion, to a British spook, and then to Russian sources? Moreover, what if those Kremlin-tied sources already knew about this dirt-digging, tipped off by Mr. Akhmetshin? What if they specifically made up claims to dupe Mr. Steele, to trick him into writing this dossier?

Fusion GPS, in an email, said that it “did not spread false information about William Browder.” The firm said it is cooperating with Congress and that “the president and his allies are desperately trying to smear Fusion GPS because it investigated Donald Trump’s ties to Russia.”

If the Russian intention was to sow chaos in the American political system, few things could have been more effective than that dossier, which ramped up an FBI investigation and sparked congressional probes and a special counsel, deeply wounding the president. This is all to Mr. Putin’s benefit, and the question is whether Russia engineered it.

If Special Counsel Robert Mueller, Democrats and the media really want answers about Russian meddling, this is a far deeper well than the so-far scant case against Mr. Trump. If they refuse to dive into the story, we’ll know that the truth about Russia and the election was never what they were after.

Write to kim@wsj.com.

rickn

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #246 on: July 28, 2017, 11:18:16 AM »
It looks more and more like Russia played both sides of the election and sought destabilization of US politics in retaliation for passage of the Magnitsky Act by Congress in 2012.

Russia appears to have succeeded in its efforts as well as the UK succeeded with the Zimmerman Telegram 100 years earlier.

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

ccp

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #247 on: July 28, 2017, 03:06:39 PM »
Hi Rick,

yes looks like Russia did and the Dems are furthering the confusion and chaos  by delegimazing Trump every which way they can though I don't think Russia had anything to do with outcome
Hillary should blame herself for the loss .  Everything released was true.  IF Comey and the DOJ had done their jobs in first place instead of giving her a pass then she would not evven have gotten  as far as she did.

Putin must be hysterical with laughter over vodka behind the scenes.




rickn

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #248 on: July 28, 2017, 04:16:12 PM »
When one follows the money to Fusion GPS and the phony "Russian dossier" that it pushed to anti-Trump people, one can see the links to Putin and his efforts to rescind the Magnitsky Act.  All you need know here is that the retired Brit who authored the "dossier" defended a libel action against him in the UK by claiming that he thoroughly disclosed to Fusion GPS that his sources were Russian. 

Comey, McCain, and a cast of thousands were duped by that dossier because it confirmed their pre-existing opinions of Trump.  Comey likely used the dossier to ratchet up the counterintel investigation of Trump people.  Information in it was used to obtain a FISA warrant against certain Trump associates. 

Of course, the Russians had the other alternative covered.  If Hillary had been elected, then we'd be having investigations into the emails, servers, and other stuff.  I am confident that Russian intel operatives were behind the leak of the Podesta emails to Wikileaks; but I am not confident that they did the original phishing scam on Podesta. 

The most likely scenario here is that Putin outfoxed the DC swamp and the swamp does not want to admit it.  Hence, it is in full cover-up mode.  And, its cover-up consists mainly of attacking Trump in order to deflect the spotlight from them.

So, Putin and Russian intel has suceeded in neutralizing Trump with a special counsel investigation based upon a phony dossier that was spoon-fed to anti-Trump oppo research peeps by Russian operatives.  And the entire meeting with Trump Jr was a set-up designed to ascertain whether his group would be friendly to Russia and its efforts to overturn Magnitsky.  When Trmup Jr, Kushner and Manafort walked away, the effort shifted to the current effort to undermine Trump by using political opponents as unwittings.


G M

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Re: The Russian conspiracy, Comey, related matters
« Reply #249 on: July 28, 2017, 04:58:13 PM »
When one follows the money to Fusion GPS and the phony "Russian dossier" that it pushed to anti-Trump people, one can see the links to Putin and his efforts to rescind the Magnitsky Act.  All you need know here is that the retired Brit who authored the "dossier" defended a libel action against him in the UK by claiming that he thoroughly disclosed to Fusion GPS that his sources were Russian. 

Comey, McCain, and a cast of thousands were duped by that dossier because it confirmed their pre-existing opinions of Trump.  Comey likely used the dossier to ratchet up the counterintel investigation of Trump people.  Information in it was used to obtain a FISA warrant against certain Trump associates. 

Of course, the Russians had the other alternative covered.  If Hillary had been elected, then we'd be having investigations into the emails, servers, and other stuff.  I am confident that Russian intel operatives were behind the leak of the Podesta emails to Wikileaks; but I am not confident that they did the original phishing scam on Podesta. 

The most likely scenario here is that Putin outfoxed the DC swamp and the swamp does not want to admit it.  Hence, it is in full cover-up mode.  And, its cover-up consists mainly of attacking Trump in order to deflect the spotlight from them.

So, Putin and Russian intel has suceeded in neutralizing Trump with a special counsel investigation based upon a phony dossier that was spoon-fed to anti-Trump oppo research peeps by Russian operatives.  And the entire meeting with Trump Jr was a set-up designed to ascertain whether his group would be friendly to Russia and its efforts to overturn Magnitsky.  When Trmup Jr, Kushner and Manafort walked away, the effort shifted to the current effort to undermine Trump by using political opponents as unwittings.



Exactly!