Let the equivocation, the whistling past the grave yard, and the "where's the proof after all this time" stuff … begin.

For the record … I was the first (possibly the only) NT member to call … CONSPIRACY & OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE REGARDING WHAT MAY YRT BE DEEMED … "A STOLEN ELECTION!"

In the words of Jess Willard Trump … "We'll see what happens."

Damn, i thought you had old pictures of Five Points or Pennypack Park............lol

Damn, i thought you had old pictures of Five Points or Pennypack Park............lol

I do have some Pennypack Park pix from c.1900! A topic for another day!

I do have some Pennypack Park pix from c.1900! A topic for another day!

Damn! 

Hey Donald, after your Putin meeting, bring home some Russians in handcuffs … and HAVE THE BALLS TO STAND UP FOR AMERICA!

So is Trump a Russian mole or just a garden variety traitor?    It seems that Putin really did respond directly to Trump's request to break into American computer networks and undermine American democracy.

thinkprogress

So is Trump a Russian mole or just a garden variety traitor?

No, I think Haden had it right, 

trump owes Russian banks boatloads of  money and now he is a Russian agent. That's how Putin turned him into an useful idiot

Underwhelming response may tell a tale.

In an article I posted yesterday (and locked after 320+ comments) below was my last comment.

The text in blue is a comment from another member to which I was responding.

As follows …

33.2.2     A. Macarthur     replied to    arkpdx   @ 33.2       yesterday

In case any of the boys stop in, the boys who ordinarily get in my face when I go after their Jess Willard, I pose the following question;

Which is worse, conspiring with a hostile adversary to undermine American democracy, or, taking a knee before a football game?

Who are the snowflakes now?

YEP, SHE SURE HAS. AND THE SHARING THE SPACE WITH HER WOULD BE THE LEFT WING CURRENT HERO AND REVERENT ALTAR BOY...THE ARROGANT AND SMIRK FACED PRICK POS CALLED PETER STRZOK

the heavy-handed, thug-loving and relentlessly deceitful grandstander that tragically has become our face!

 conspiring with a hostile adversary to undermine American democracy, or, taking a knee before a football game?

You know what's worse? Claiming someone conspired with a hostile adversary without any any evidence to support such a claim. 

I remember a poster who spent 2015 and 2016 claiming it was un-american to even hint that Hillary Clinton committed a crime until she was found guilty in a court of law. Remember that guy? Calling people traitors and America hater for even suggesting Clinton broke a law. Innocent until proven guilty was his mantra.

I wonder what that guy would say about someone accusing the President of conspiring with an enemy without any evidence, let alone a conviction.  

I wonder what that guy would say about someone accusing the President of conspiring with an enemy without any evidence, let alone a conviction.

Why do republicans keep expecting a conclusion before the investigation is complete?  After all that whining about Strzok doing something to 'stop Trump' with NO evidence,  they must be apoplectic after Trump asked for Russian help and they obliged hours later. 

Only a simpleton would have missed the obvious sarcasm in that comment. Why weren't the lefties a bit concerned about 30,000 missing government emails, or Hillary's illegal use of her home made server to put all her emails under her own control. That showed intent to deceive and hide things.

You know what's worse? Claiming someone conspired with a hostile adversary without any any evidence to support such a claim.

Maybe you should read the new indictment?    It shows that a number of Americans conspired with the Russians to subvert the election in Trump's favor.    Presumably the names and the specific charges will be in a separate indictment, but it seems that at least one Florida Republican was directly involved.

In announcing the indictments, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein was very careful to say that the charges don’t include any allegation that an American knowingly participated in the conspiracy. However, that doesn’t mean they don’t show Americans were involved. In fact, the indictments show that multiple Republicans were involved in requesting documents, communicating with Russian operatives, identifying documents of value, and coordinating the release of stolen information.

thinkprogress

In fact, the indictments show that multiple Republicans were involved in requesting documents, communicating with Russian operatives, identifying documents of value, and coordinating the release of stolen information.

And yet, the damn gop continues to lie when saying that there is no indication of gop collusion in these new indictments...

You know what's worse? Claiming someone conspired with a hostile adversary without any any evidence to support such a claim. 

I remember a poster who spent 2015 and 2016 claiming it was un-american to even hint that Hillary Clinton committed a crime until she was found guilty in a court of law. Remember that guy? Calling people traitors and America hater for even suggesting Clinton broke a law. Innocent until proven guilty was his mantra.

I wonder what that guy would say about someone accusing the President of conspiring with an enemy without any evidence, let alone a conviction.  

You don't need to be cute about it, Sean … here's the difference between then and now;

35 Indictments, multiple confessions, validated hacking and interference in a POTUS election, more indictments to come, a POTUS planning to MEET ALONE WITH THE RUSSIAN WHO IS BEHIND ALL THAT LED TO THE INDICTMENTS AND CONFESSIONS!

If you're going to allude to me, make sure you remind everyone who called "Obstruction of Justice," "Conspiracy," predicted "flipping" of key Trump associates, etc. … and posited the possibility of members of Congress being involved (as possible reason for their silence) … and remind everyone that you mocked me regarding most or all of those call outs.

And, NO, Sean, I never called anyone a "traitor," stick to the realities.

That showed intent to deceive and hide things.

You may be correct, Greg … we will likely never know if she intended to be deceitful, or, if she was just incredibly careless and stupid.

However …

Many commentators have criticized Comey’s decision, arguing the statute Clinton was accused of violating,  18 U.S.C. § 793(f) , requires only “gross negligence,” not intent.  Former federal prosecutor Andy McCarthy  has gone so far as to say that replacing the words “gross negligence” with “intent” rewrites that statute to serve political ends .

McCarthy and others are mistaken. The issue of  mens rea , or intent, is not as simple as it seems on the surface, and intent is the correct standard.  Comey was right not to recommend filing charges and to base his decision on the absence of evidence that Clinton had the necessary intent.

Section 793(f) makes it a felony for any person “entrusted with… information relating to the national defense” to allow that information to be “removed from its proper place of custody” through “gross negligence.” On its face, the law does not appear to require intent, but it turns out the key phrase in 793(f) is not “gross negligence.”  The key phrase is “related to the national defense.”

deleted

You know what's worse? Claiming someone conspired with a hostile adversary without any any evidence to support such a claim.

nytimes

HELSINKI, Finland — President Trump stood next to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia on Monday and publicly challenged the conclusion of his own intelligence agencies that Moscow interfered in the 2016 presidential election, wrapping up what he called a “deeply productive” summit meeting with an extraordinary show of trust for a leader accused of attacking American democracy.

I wonder what you would say if this was Hillary Clinton or, Barack Obama who did this.

I wonder what that guy would say about someone accusing the President of conspiring with an enemy without any evidence, let alone a conviction.

There are way too many Russian connections to deny there wasn't a conspiracy to defraud the American public of a fair election.

Hillary still won by 3 million popular votes but I think Trump's son and son in law were more eager for the power and the win than Trump himself was. So his family did the dirty work.

Trump has said more than once he didn't know the job would be this hard and prefers his life before the election. It is going to come down to nailing his family who crossed the line and never notified law enforcement that they had contact with an offer of foreign help. Then it will be a blame game as to whether or not Trump knew about it, unless they can connect the money.

It was Obama that knew what the Russians were doing more than Trump because he was hacking into their computers. The truth is the US has been doing this kind of hacking and Obama was even spying on Merkel's phone. The USA is just as dirty as the Russians. 

telegraph.co.uk

“I’m not in any way justifying what the Russians did in 2016,” Mr. Levin said. “It was completely wrong of Vladimir Putin to intervene in this way. That said, the methods they used in this election were the digital version of methods used both by the United States and Russia for decades: breaking into party headquarters, recruiting secretaries, placing informants in a party, giving information or disinformation to newspapers.”

His findings underscore how routine election meddling by the United States — sometimes covert and sometimes quite open — has been.

The precedent was established in Italy with assistance to non-Communist candidates from the late 1940s to the 1960s. “We had bags of money that we delivered to selected politicians, to defray their expenses,” said F. Mark Wyatt, a former C.I.A. officer, in a 1996 interview .

nytimes

It was Obama that knew what the Russians were doing more than Trump because he was hacking into their computers. The truth is the US has been doing this kind of hacking and Obama was even spying on Merkel's phone. The USA is just as dirty as the Russians.

AND IT WAS MITCH McCONNELL WHO PREVENTED THE INFORMATION FROM BEING REVEALED TO THE PUBLIC!

So, Dean, are you justifying the interference by Russia and a plausible CONSPIRACY?

Joe Biden said Tuesday that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell stopped the Obama administration from speaking out about Russian interference in the 2016 campaign by refusing to sign on to a bipartisan statement of condemnation.

That moment, the former Democratic vice president said, made him think “the die had been cast ... this was all about the political play.”

Biden was speaking at an event hosted by the Council on Foreign Relations, a block from his old office at the Old Executive Office Building, to discuss his new article in the latest issue of Foreign Affairs, “How to Stand Up to the Kremlin.”

politico

___________________________________________________________

Dean,

I GREATLY RESPECT YOU FOR SHOWING UP IN MY DISCUSSION … our political disagreements aside.

I can see why McConnell wouldn't want to get involved when he knew the USA was just as dirty and had been for years before this election. How can he criticize others when his own government is doing the same? Spying and interfering in elections and spreading information and fake news to the press through the CIA is no different than what the Russians did. 

So, Dean, are you justifying the interference by Russia and a plausible CONSPIRACY?

Nobody is justifying any interference, but as Rosenstein said, none of this "meddling" has any affect on the voting or final outcome, and no "Americans" were involved. No evidence has come forth to date that says collusion was even likely, let alone plausible.

Nobody is justifying any interference, but as Rosenstein said, none of this "meddling" has any affect on the voting or final outcome, and no "Americans" were involved. No evidence has come forth to date that says collusion was even likely, let alone plausible.

YET!

So, Dean, you seem to be saying that "two wrongs make a right."

Then to make things right I guess foreign governments should start indicting USA spies for hacking into their computers. I wouldn't be surprised if Obama was just as guilty as the Russians that Mueller is indicting. The real question is not what Trump knew but what did Obama know because he was the one with the spies and access to their information. 

Then to make things right I guess foreign governments should start indicting USA spies for hacking into their computers. I wouldn't be surprised if Obama was just as guilty as the Russians that Mueller is indicting. The real question is not what Trump knew but what did Obama know because he was the one with the spies and access to their information.

So, what you are saying here is that it is ok for the Russians to subvert our elections because we might have done it in theirs? And, to install someone who might wish to destroy our government simply because Obama might have done something similar? WOW.

The real question is not what Trump knew but what did Obama know because he was the one with the spies and access to their information.

Obama stated that he did not want to be the one informing the public because he did not want to appear to be pushing the POTUS election towards Clinton … HOW FUCKING IRONIC WHEN RUSSIA, AND POSSIBLY IN CONSPIRACY WITH TRUMP, TRUMP MAY HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN ILLEGALLY PUSHING THE ELECTION TO HIMSELF!

The Obama administration faced pressure from lawmakers and some intelligence officials to speak out about Russian interference. Without consensus across the intelligence community on Russia’s role and motivations, and facing opposition from key Republicans, and because of concern about appearing to be trying to influence the election, the White House did not act publicly.

washingtonpost

I suspect the real reason Obama didn’t want to speak out was because he was just as guilty as they were. The reason he had information was because his spies were doing the same thing. For him to claim they were in the wrong he would have opened himself up to the same criticism. It would have been nothing more than the pot calling the kettle black. After Snowden blew the whistle on Obama’s illegal spying he didn’t want to draw anymore attention to his covert operations. 

Obama ordered the Russian hackers to be left alone. 

yahoo

I suspect the real reason Obama didn’t want to speak out was because he was just as guilty as they were. The reason he had information was because his spies were doing the same thing. For him to claim they were in the wrong he would have opened himself up to the same criticism. It would have been nothing more than the pot calling the kettle black. After Snowden blew the whistle on Obama’s illegal spying he didn’t want to draw anymore attention to his covert operations.

So, it's ok in your opinion for Putin or, any other foreign leader to pick our government for us and, to tear down our democracy. Got it.

Obama ordered the Russian hackers to be left alone.

I agree that it would have been far better if Obama had simply announced that Russia was conspiring with Trump to pervert US elections.

Obama ordered the Russian hackers to be left alone.

Obama ordered the Russian hackers to be left alone.

No, he kicked them out of the country. 

Obama expels 35 Russian diplomats in retaliation for US election hacking

theguardian

nbut as Rosenstein said, none of this "meddling" has any affect on the voting or final outcome, and no "Americans" were involved.

Your comment is both false and misleading.

Rosenstein did not say "none of meddling" has any affect on the voting".

That's an out and out misrepresentation on your part of what he said-- and an obvious (& very sleazy) attempt on your part to try to mislead us. Rather, what he did say was that so far there's been no evidence of that uncovered. Which doesn't prove it didn't happen.....

Shame on you!

Nobody is justifying any interference, but as Rosenstein said, none of this "meddling" has any affect on the voting or final outcome, and no "Americans" were involved.

Where did he say "no Americans were involved"?

The ONLY way that Trump can be removed from office is by impeachment in the House, and then be found guilty by at least 67 votes in the Senate. I don't see that happening, especially after the midterms. Impeachment was not taken as lightly by the Founders as it seems to be by the left.

It is unsettled law as to whether or not a sitting President can be indicted … and Trump's nomination of Kavanaugh implies his fear that he may be indicted.

But I offer you the opportunity to directly answer the question posed in the comment below.

Trump nominee to fill the current Supreme Court vacancy, Matt Kavanaugh, of late, hypocritically objects to any investigations, indictments, etc., civil or criminal, regarding a sitting President of the United States: yet, Kavanaugh relentlessly and zealously participated in the Ken Starr investigation of the then, sitting President, Bill Clinton … Democrat … Bill Clinton.

However, with a Republican President in the Oval Office, Kavanaugh states that a President’s "busy schedule and responsibilities” should not be impeded by any such investigations, etc. .

In that case, I vehemently hope that even just one U.S. Senator, while interviewing Kavanaugh during his nomination hearing, asks the following question, and, insists on a DIRECT, “YES" OR “NO" ANSWER!

"Nominee Kavanaugh, if a sitting POTUS were to commit, i.e., murder, order genocide, commit rape, etc., assuming conclusive video, live, and/or on-camera, etc. evidence, possibly with credible witness testimony, would you, as a Justice of the Court, cast a vote, PROHIBITING A CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION AND INDICTMENT (because a "sitting President's schedule is too busy”)?

“Please respond, “Yes” or “No”.

______________________________________________________

And this has nothing to do with Strzok or Waters so; unless you can make a connection without unrelated cartoons stay on topic.

Those would indeed be considered as  "high crimes and misdemeanors". A president would still have to be impeached first, thrown out of office, and then charged and tried as any other citizen would be. All Kavanaugh was saying is that a sitting president should not and cannot be charged with a crime and perp walked out of WH. The legal impeachment process has to be followed. While it's fun to speculate, or even hope that Trump will be tossed, it's not gonna happen. It would make more sense to go knocking on doors, getting that lethargic Democrat vote out.

It doesn't get any lighter than impeaching someone for getting a blowjob.

Again, Greg, it is not settled in law.

But I'll take it a step further … using the hypothetical of a POTUS ORDERING GENOCIDE … would you hold to your position if a genocide was underway … absent of impeachment, to allow the genocide to continue and not indict  the POTUS until the end of his term(s)?

NOTE: We are now involved in a decent debate … I appreciate it and I thank you.

How would it be "settled", and by whom? 

It doesn't get any lighter than impeaching someone for getting a blowjob.

I agree, but lying to Congress is impeachable.

How would it be "settled", and by whom?

In law, a settlement is a resolution between disputing parties about a legal case, reached either before or after court action begins. 

There has never been a formal case nor decision regarding whether or not a sitting POTUS can be indicted without first being impeached and removed from office.

Nixon resigned in fear of being indicted.

I agree, but lying to Congress is impeachable.

But it did not lead to removal from office.

We must remember that the SCOTUS agreed that a sitting president could be subpoenaed.

TWICE!

Ya, lying about the blowjob.  Like I said, it doesn't get any lighter.  There are only three people in the world who have any right to take any interest in the incident at all; Bill, Monica, and Hillary.

Gee, you didn't seem to think the same about Trump and Daniels!

Resignation does NOT mean that he could not have been indicted.

I've promised someone that I wouldn't respond to his comments so, I have to go around that promise here, sorry.

It must be remembered that in spite of Nixons resignation he couldn't be indicted because Ford pardoned him.

Gee, you didn't seem to think the same about Trump and Daniels!

Your lack of understanding the significance is galactic! The Trump/Daniels/Cohen issue is ultimate one of Campaign Finance violations …

Using campaign funds could have been a violation of federal law.

While Trump's supporters have largely ignored the story, along with  allegations of sexual assault  and  the infamous Access Hollywood tape , the Stormy Daniels case could see the president testify in court - with 2018 mid-term elections just around the corner.

Could, maybe, may.

SOSDD

Resignation does NOT mean that he could not have been indicted.

Nixon made a deal with Gerald Ford who subsequently pardoned Nixon; when an individual accepts a POTUS pardon, he often is ADMITTING GUILT for that which he was pardoned.

1. In 1915, the Supreme Court indeed said, of pardons, that “acceptance” carries “a confession of” guilt.  Burdick v. United States  (1915) . Other courts have echoed that since.

2. On the other hand, a pardon has historically been seen as serving several different functions, one of which is protecting people who were convicted even though they were legally innocent. In   the words of Justice Joseph Story , the most respected early commentator on the Constitution (writing in 1833),

yes, I am aware that a pardon makes indictment impossible. But there was plenty of time and plenty of evidence for Nixon to be indicted BEFORE he got pardoned,

yes, I am aware that a pardon makes indictment impossible. But there was plenty of time and plenty of evidence for Nixon to be indicted BEFORE he got pardoned,

And given the current 35 INDICTMENTS AND A NUMBER OF CONFESSIONS … likely with more to come … there is a great deal more plausibly facing Trump.

NOTE: And I thank you for engaging in actual debate … it makes the thread more interesting.

How would it be "settled", and by whom?

The Nuremberg Trials. It is illegal to effect illegal orders. Just knowing of crimes and not reporting is a crime.

Anyone who knew of Russian hacking and did not report it to the FBI is guilty of obstruction of justice IMO...

Well, you are going to need to tie Trump directly to someone convicted of something. Meaning he ordered it or knew of it.

We don't do guilty by association in America.

Well, you are going to need to tie Trump directly to someone convicted of something. Meaning he ordered it or knew of it.

We don't do guilty by association in America.

We (that being those of us not having inside information regarding Mueller's investigation) don't know all of the evidence that exists beyond what's already been revealed. So, of course, whomsoever is charged with whatever, depending on the particular charge … the following obtains:

Legal   Definition of   preponderance of the evidence

the standard of proof in most civil cases in which the party bearing the burden of proof must present evidence which is more credible and convincing than that presented by the other party or which shows that the fact to be proven is more probable than not; also : the evidence meeting this standard 

• plaintiffs must show by a preponderance of the evidence that defendant's negligence proximately caused the injuries

  — compare   clear and convincing ,   reasonable doubt  

Beyond a Reasonable Doubt

The standard that must be met by the prosecution's evidence in a  criminal  prosecution: that no other logical explanation can be derived from the facts except that the defendant committed the crime, thereby overcoming the presumption that a person is innocent until proven guilty.

If the jurors or judge have no doubt as to the defendant's guilt, or if their only doubts are unreasonable doubts, thenthe prosecutor has proven the defendant's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt and the defendant should be pronounced guilty.

OMG, that's cute!

You think some will be CIVIL cases?

You are hilarious!

I tried to give you the respect of a direct and specific answer ... but you just can’t help being what you are.

Troll somewhere else.

You think some will be CIVIL cases?

There's already two active civil suits now.

You think some will be CIVIL cases?

There's already two active civil suits now.

How about that!

I would like to read about them.

Can you show a link, please?

Donald Trump's pending lawsuits and his presidency

bbc

Thanks for the link, but it didn't have anything to do with the discussion at hand.

do you have any links to civil suits that we were talking about?

do you have any links to civil suits that we were talking about?

Here's the perspective; civil penalties are not pardonable … but, I'm not sure what you're looking for … guessing … civil litigation that may result from Mueller?

I tried to respond to a comment you made about tying Trump to actionable offenses … I thought I was being thorough.

Civil suits would not result in impeachment.

Isn't that the ultimate goal?

You aren't convicted of anything in a civil suit.

I was initially responding to your comment …

8.2.21    Texan1211    replied to    A. Macarthur  @ 8.2.19      yesterday

I was not implying that a lost civil suit could generate impeachment; I was just giving parameters to be met in various litigations.

Civil suits would not result in impeachment.

And this is where the ignorance of the right comes to light...The payoff of Stormy Daniels is a violation of campaign finance laws.

The paying off of settlements from Trump's foundations is also illegal....

Both grounds for impeachment and conviction....

Gee, you didn't seem to think the same about Trump and Daniels!

Trump and, Daniels is a different case, in that case it is possible that the "hush payment" made to Daniels was made with campaign funds and, was meant to keep it from being revealed during the campaign, in fact close to November. 

Rosenstein:  “There is no allegation in this indictment that any American citizen committed a crime . There is no allegation that the conspiracy changed the vote count or affected any election result.”

DONE and DONE ! 

Rosenstein: “There is no allegation in this indictment that any American citizen committed a crime. There is no allegation that the conspiracy changed the vote count or affected any election result.”YET!

Yet!

It's coming, my friend. Smart investigators will put "handwriting on the wall" to generate fear and anxiety for those who may resultantly rush to make a deal in order to mitigate the imminent consequences.

There may even be a culpable Republican member of Congress (or an individual who ran for Congress in 2016).

I never just idly speculate.

There may be lions, tigers and bears!

Oh my!

Smart investigators will put "handwriting on the wall" to generate fear and anxiety for those who may resultantly rush to make a deal in order to mitigate the imminent consequences.

Hell, Liberals have been doing that since this.....Hunt....started, with no evidence either.

Hell, Liberals have been doing that since this.....Hunt....started, with no evidence either.

I challenge you to provide specifics … not one-line pronouncements.

Adam Schiff says "the Democrats have 'ample evidence' of collusion between Trump and Russia. Schiff said the Democrats would continue their own investigation and this week “received new documents from another important witness.” 

California Rep. Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the panel, said Tuesday that he believes there is “significant evidence” of collusion between Trump’s campaign and Russia, though he couldn’t say if there was criminal wrongdoing.

That wasn't hard !

Adam Schiff says "the Democrats have 'ample evidence' of collusion between Trump and Russia. Schiff said the Democrats would continue their own investigation and this week “received new documents from another important witness.” 

California Rep. Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the panel, said Tuesday that he believes there is “significant evidence” of collusion between Trump’s campaign and Russia, though he couldn’t say if there was criminal wrongdoing.

That wasn't hard !

It wasn't viable either!

How the White House and Republicans Blew Up the House Russia Investigation

Devin Nunes Seems to Have Paralyzed the House Intelligence Committee

More …

Devin Nunes Is Criticized for Keeping Subpoena Power in Russia Inquiry

It wasn't viable either!

Maybe not according to you....but it sure did answer your challenge.

Presenting a partial account that fails to explain why it is only partial …  is disingenuous … in this case, because leaves a false impression that implies an investigation ended conclusively with no cited culpabilities!

But, in reality … in one of many such Republican efforts to undermine the investigation …

Schiff: GOP 'refused' to issue subpoena for mystery

Trump Jr. call

Rep.  Adam Schiff  (D-Calif.) criticized Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee on Friday for refusing to issue a subpoena for  Donald Trump Jr. 's phone records to determine whether he received permission from his father to meet with a Russian lawyer at Trump Tower.

Schiff told  The Washington Post  that a blocked number in Trump Jr.'s phone records, recorded right after he set up the specifics of the Trump Tower meeting, could belong to  President Trump . But he said that Republicans on the committee refused to issue a subpoena to determine the identity of the blocked caller.

thehill

Perhaps Trump supporters believe that no one understands why the would march into hell for an incompetent liar, not qualified for office, and, a clear danger, ultimately even to themselves in terms of what constitute ultimately, their own utilitarian interests.

_________________________________________________

Our usual lively debate!

“There is no allegation in this indictment that any American citizen committed a crime. There is no allegation that the conspiracy changed the vote count or affected any election result.”

Other key words in the statement that you over looked, IN THIS INDICTMENT, which means that there are other indictments coming that may have those allegations in them, we will have to wait and, see so, don't break out the champagne yet.

Man...Is that wishful thinking. Still grasping for something....anything, I see. 

You can whistle past the graveyard until you orgasm … but what's "CUMMING" are more indictments.

Man...Is that wishful thinking. Still grasping for something....anything, I see.

Not wishful thinking, 

politico

cnn

The full list of known indictments and plea deals in Mueller’s probe
1) George Papadopoulos, former Trump campaign foreign policy adviser, pleaded guilty in October to making false statements to the FBI.
2) Michael Flynn, Trump’s former national security adviser, pleaded guilty in December to making false statements to the FBI.

3) Paul Manafort, Trump’s former campaign chair, was indicted in October in Washington, DC on charges of conspiracy, money laundering, and false statements — all related to his work for Ukrainian politicians before he joined the Trump campaign. He’s pleaded not guilty on all counts. Then, in February, Mueller filed a new case against him in Virginia, with tax, financial, and bank fraud charges.
4) Rick Gates, a former Trump campaign aide and Manafort’s longtime junior business partner, was indicted on similar charges to Manafort. But in February he agreed to a plea deal with Mueller’s team, pleading guilty to just one false statements charge and one conspiracy charge.

5-20) 13 Russian nationals and three Russian companies were indicted on conspiracy charges, with some also being accused of identity theft. The charges related to a Russian propaganda effort designed to interfere with the 2016 campaign. The companies involved are the Internet Research Agency, often described as a “Russian troll farm,” and two other companies that helped finance it. The Russian nationals indicted include 12 of the agency’s employees and its alleged financier, Yevgeny Prigozhin.

21) Richard Pinedo: This California man pleaded guilty to an identity theft charge in connection with the Russian indictments, and has agreed to cooperate with Mueller.
22) Alex van der Zwaan: This London lawyer pleaded guilty to making false statements to the FBI about his contacts with Rick Gates and another unnamed person based in Ukraine.
23) Konstantin Kilimnik: This longtime business associate of Manafort and Gates, who’s currently based in Russia, was charged alongside Manafort with attempting to obstruct justice by tampering with witnesses in Manafort’s pending case this year.
24-35) 12 Russian GRU officers: These officers of Russia’s military intelligence service were charged with crimes related to the hacking and leaking of leading Democrats’ emails in 2016.
Two ex-Trump advisers lied to the FBI about their contacts with Russians

vox

And, a Partridge in a Pear tree.

“There is no allegation in this indictment that any American citizen committed a crime.

Your assumption that because an investigation (that is far from complete) has not found evidence that it happened yet is proof that they never will find evidence as the investigation progresses is just plain stupid!

Of course the other possibility is that your statement is not indicative of stupidity, but rather that you deliberately trying to mislead us with that obvious nonsense....

(I'm willing to gove you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you are not deliberately trying to mislead us....)

“There is no allegation in this indictment that any American citizen committed a crime.

Is that so?

Mueller: Congressional candidate sought stolen emails from Russian spies in 2016

An unnamed congressional candidate sought hacked documents about his or her opponent in the 2016 election from Russian intelligence officers who were posing as an online activist, prosecutors working for special counsel Robert Mueller charged Friday.

The allegation is spelled out in a single paragraph of a 29-page   indictment   released Friday that accuses 12 Russian intelligence officers with   conducting a hacking campaign that targeted Democratic political organizations   to attempt to influence the 2016 election. Prosecutors charged that the hackers breached the computers of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, then stole troves of emails and other records that the Russian government later made public. 

usatoday

For Mueller, pushing to finish parts of Russia probe, question of American involvement remains

washingtonpost

Keep something going LONG ENOUGH, you probably can find a tidbit that can be blown out of proportion.

Is that so?

According to the Head of ALL the "Secret Police" Rosenstein. 

Hyperbole is not rebuttal.

It is usually dismissive.

You mean that republican appointed by Trump himself? 

Trump requests that Russia find Hillary's missing emails. 

Shortly afterward the Russians attempt to hack into Hillary Clinton emails. 

DUH. 

Rosenstein: “There is no allegation in this indictment that any American citizen committed a crime. There is no allegation that the conspiracy changed the vote count or affected any election result.”

I take it the "Russians" actually found ALL of Hillary's erased emails, and that's why your upset ?

Not true, the dates and times don't correlate.

Not true, the dates and times don't correlate.

Wrong, Greg … the dates and times do, in fact, correlate.

As it turns out, that same day, the Russians — whether they had tuned in or not — made their first effort to break into the servers used by Mrs. Clinton’s personal office, according to a sweeping 29-page indictment unsealed Friday by the special counsel’s office that  charged 12 Russians with election hacking .

Remember This?

All too well, perhaps now it will come back and take a huuuuuuuuuuuuge bite out of His fat arse. But we will have to wait and see.

We are still waiting for Trump to lose and Abuela to be coronated.

Ancient history at this point, She lost, He won and America lost.

America lost?

Okay-dokey!

America lost?

Okay-dokey!

Yeah! Okey-dokey.

How Trump has already fucked Americans.

Economy

1. Raised housing payments for new homebuyers by about $500 in 2017.   On its first day, the Trump administration   reversed   an Obama administration action to lower Federal Housing Administration, or FHA, mortgage insurance premiums for new homebuyers by 25 basis points, which could have lowered mortgage payments for   1 million   households purchasing or refinancing their home this year alone.

1. Attacked the Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule, which would have required retirement advisers to act in their clients’ best financial interest.  President Trump   delayed   the rule’s implementation by 60 days and has ordered the department to re-evaluate the rule. This will make it much harder to save for retirement, as high fees from conflicted advice result in savers losing   $17 billion  in fees annually.

1. Delayed court proceedings on the Obama administration’s expansion of overtime, failing to defend the pro-worker rule.  This   rule would have   raised wages for workers by $12 billion over the next 10 years and extended overtime protections to 4.2 million more Americans. In his confirmation hearings, Labor Secretary nominee Alexander   Acosta  suggested he would attempt to weaken the overtime rule.

1. Delayed enforcement of a rule to reduce workers’ exposure to deadly silica dust for three months . After   more than four decades   of development, this rule would protect construction and manufacturing workers from inhaling silica, which can lead to lung cancer, silicosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and kidney disease. It was   projected   to save more than   600 lives   and prevent more than 900 new cases of silicosis each year.

1. Repealed the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order, which ensured that federal contractors complied with worker protection laws before receiving government contracts.   The order would have required companies wanting to do business with the government to disclose past labor law violations and come into compliance before receiving new contracts. Because of the repeal, millions of workers will be more vulnerable to wage theft, workplace injuries, and discrimination on the job. The order also   would have protected   women by   banning forced arbitration   in the case of sexual assault, harassment, or discrimination claims.  

1. Supported efforts in Congress to cut taxes on the wealthy that help fund the Affordable Care Act, or ACA.   As part of Congress’s effort to repeal and replace the ACA, a move that President Trump supported, the 3.8 percent net investment income tax would have been repealed at a cost   of $157 billion over 10 years , according to Congressional Budget Office, or CBO. This is revenue needed to fund important programs that ensure basic human living standards and retirement security for tens of millions of working Americans. Based on Trump’s rental real estate income alone,   The   Wall Street Journal   estimated   the repeal would have saved Trump $3.2 million in taxes in 2016 alone.

1. Tried to cut his own taxes by millions of dollars while taking health insurance from tens of millions of Americans.   Based on President Trump’s leaked 2005 Tax Return Form 1040, repealing the ACA could give Trump a   personal tax cut   of more than $2 million. At the same time, the House legislation to repeal the ACA would have taken health insurance from 24 million Americans.

1. Assembled a team of wealthy financial industry elites to advise him on tax reform, which he promised would benefit the middle class.   The tax code is the tool of choice when special favors are doled out to special interests. Despite his campaign promises to drain the swamp, President Trump has assembled a   band of elites   to construct his tax reform plan: three former Goldman Sachs executives, Steve Mnuchin, Gary Cohn, and Steve Bannon; two more former executives from the finance industry, Justin Muzinich and Craig Phillips; and a former tax lobbyist for Fidelity Investments, Shahira Knight.

1. Made it harder for veterans to find jobs with a federal hiring freeze.   Veterans receive a strong hiring preference for federal jobs, and roughly one-third of all newly hired federal employees in 2015 were veterans. Even if many jobs at the Department of Veterans Affairs, or VA, are exempt from the hiring freeze, other vacant jobs will still be unavailable at other federal agencies.  

1. Proposed budget cuts that would devastate rural America.   President Trump’s   budget would eliminate programs   that support rural jobs, housing, infrastructure, health care, and economic development. If implemented, these budget cuts would eliminate affordable housing for tens of thousands of struggling rural families; eliminate community service jobs for 18,000 senior citizens living in rural areas; and eliminate critical support for airline connections serving 175 small and rural communities.

1. Proposed dramatically slashing job training programs and worker wage and safety enforcement.  President Trump’s proposed fiscal year 2018 budget could result in   2.7 million   adults and youths losing access to job training and employment services in 2018.

1. Proposed budget cuts that would increase roadway congestion and reduce economic productivity .   The budget   calls for eliminating the TIGER grant program at the U.S. Department of Transportation, or USDOT, which funds innovative surface transportation projects. Additionally, the budget calls for the phased elimination of the New Starts program within the Federal Transit Administration, which funds major public transportation projects. Rail and bus rapid transit projects help to reduce roadway congestion and air pollution while spurring economic development.

1. Proposed budget cuts that would threaten billions in loans and investments to distressed communities.   The proposed budget would eliminate the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, which supports billions of dollars in financing across low-income communities, including more than   $300 million in rural and Native American   communities, as well as the Economic Development Administration and the Manufacturing Extension Partnership, costing another $300 million or more that is annually   invested in community growth . Without federal support, economic development in these locations will suffer, including small-business development.

1. Reneged on his promise to disclose his tax returns.   President Trump’s refusal leaves Americans in the dark about whether any tax reform he proposes will benefit him or working Americans. Trump repeatedly   stated   before and after he was elected that he would disclose his tax returns. While initially he said he could not release them because he was being audited—a fact that does not prevent anyone from releasing their returns—his counselor, Kellyanne Conway   has now said , “He’s not going to release his tax returns.”

1. Proposed   $6.7 billion   cut to housing and community support programs.   President Trump’s budget would eliminate the Community Development Block Grant, which is used by   1,265 local communities  for important initiatives such as Meals on Wheels, neighborhood rehabilitation, the development of affordable housing, job training, and business expansion. The Housing Choice Vouchers program will also experience deep cuts in funding, as will other programs providing supportive services for the elderly and persons with disabilities. According to the   Center on Budget and Policy Priorities , about 200,000 families will no longer receive a housing voucher to pay for their rental costs and could eventually face homelessness in a housing market where there is a severe shortage of affordable housing.

1. Attacked neutral budget analysts so that lawmakers ignore negative effects from their policies.   The Trump administration attacked the nonpartisan CBO in an attempt to   preemptively discredit   their estimates related to legislation repealing the ACA. These attacks continued   after   the CBO estimated that the House ACA repeal bill would take coverage away from 24 million Americans by 2026. This is part of a   larger attempt   by the Trump administration to discredit independent data and analysis in order to obscure the negative impacts that their agenda will have for working families.  

1. Undermined investor protection by making it harder for the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, to hold Wall Street accountable.   An independent and vigorous Division of Enforcement at the SEC is vital to preserving free and fair financial markets for investors. After the Bernie Madoff scandal, Obama administration SEC Chair Mary Schapiro made it easier for Division of Enforcement staff to open investigations and issue subpoenas to protect investors and get to the bottom of suspected malfeasance. Chair Michael Piwowar inexplicably   rolled back this change , hindering the SEC’s ability to protect the average investor from financial wrongdoing. He has also proposed rolling back key advances in corporate transparency, including regarding   human rights risks in supply chains   and the   pay ratio   between CEOs and the median worker.

1. Proposed funding cuts for programs that help support and encourage small business development.   President   Trump’s budget   cuts funding for several programs that help groups with historically low business ownership rates overcome barriers to becoming entrepreneurs, including the PRIME technical assistance grants for low-income micro-entrepreneurs; the Minority Business Development Agency, and the Economic Development Administration.

1. Attempted to make it harder for entrepreneurs to get access to affordable health.   The ACA helps   millions   of entrepreneurs obtain access to health care without relying on a spouse or employer, which allows them to take one of the necessary risks associated with starting a business. The proposed   American Health Care Act , or AHCA, would reduce access to health care and make it more expensive for many people to get comprehensive health care coverage.

1. Proposes leaving 23,000 calls for help unanswered from disaster-struck Americans.   President Trump’s skinny budget proposed   eliminating the Corporation for National and Community Service , which would also eliminate AmeriCorps, a vital service program that plays a critical role in mobilizing volunteers to aid with disaster preparedness and response.

1. Proposed slashing the WIC program.   President Trump’s proposal to slash funding for the WIC program puts basic food security at risk for thousands of families. At an annual food cost of about  $513  per person, the  $200 million cut  could help pay for a year’s worth of food and formula for nearly 390,000 participating women, children and infants.

1. Proposed elimination of the   HOME Investment Partnerships Program . To date, HOME has helped more that  1.2 million families gain  access to safe and affordable housing. But this successful program is also on President Trump’s budget chopping block, thereby threatening housing security for  thousands  of families.

1. Proposed eliminating NeighborWorks America.   NeighborWorks America provides grants to community development organizations that help build and maintain affordable housing. The program created  53,649 jobs  and assisted  360,009 families with affordable housing   in the last year alone.

Environment and energy

1. Proposed cuts to energy programs that save people money.   The Trump budget blueprint calls for a   5.6 percent cut   overall to the U.S. Department of Energy. This cut, along with   calls for additional funding   to nuclear security and waste cleanup, mean that there will be steeper cuts for programs designed to develop household appliances that save families money. President Trump’s budget proposal also eliminates programs such as   ARPA-E , which helps entrepreneurs develop clean, affordable energy, and the Weatherization Assistance Program, which upgrades the homes of low-income families with insulation and cost-effective energy efficient improvements to help reduce utility bills.

1. Allowed a dangerous pesticide to stay on the market, despite it being a threat to children’s health.  Chlorpyrifos a common agricultural pesticide that causes neurological harm in children exposed in utero. In 2016, the EPA’s scientists   concluded that the agency should ban chlorpyrifos after finding unsafe levels of the chemical on apples, peaches, oranges, strawberries, and other fruits. Dow Chemical, one of the largest producers of products using this chemical, gave   $1 million   to President Trump’s inauguration committee and leads a presidential advisory committee on manufacturing. On   March 28 , Trump’s EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt   rejected   the findings of the agency’s scientists, denied a petition to ban the chemical, and delayed further action until 2022.

1. Eliminated pollution standards for power plants and oil and gas facilities.   In his final term, President Obama established the first-ever carbon pollution standards for power plants and the first-ever methane standards for oil and gas drilling facilities. These standards would have reduced soot- and smog-forming pollutants that trigger asthma attacks and cut emissions of carbon and other gases that cause climate change. On March 28, President Trump   signed an executive order   that started the process of nullifying these pollution standards and making it harder for future presidents to put them back in place.

1. Proposed cutting EPA programs to clean up water sources.   In February, President Trump proposed a budget for the EPA that   would cut the agency’s funding   by 31 percent and its staff by one-quarter. The president’s proposal targets several popular programs, such as regional efforts to clean up the Great Lakes, Gulf of Mexico, Chesapeake Bay, and other iconic bodies of water.

1. Proposed   eliminating programs   at the EPA dedicated to preventing children’s exposure to lead-based paint, which can cause neurological delays.   An estimated 38 million U.S. homes contain lead-based paint, and in 2015, the Centers for Disease Control found that   243,000 children   had elevated levels of lead in their blood. Lead is a neurotoxin that causes permanent nerve damage.

1. Rolled back important protections for drinking water in coal communities.   One of the Trump administration’s first actions was   to nix   the Stream Protection Rule put in place by the Obama administration to prevent coal companies from polluting nearby streams. Scrapping this environmental protection was a   top priority   of the coal industry at the expense of clean drinking water in coal communities.

1. Repealed anti-bribery rule to the delight of the oil industry.   President Trump eliminated an   anti-corruption rule   that had required oil and gas companies to disclose payments to foreign governments. When he was still the CEO of Exxon Mobil, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson had lobbied to remove the rules established under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

1. Ripped off American taxpayers and avoided fixing the broken federal coal-leasing program.   The Trump administration moved to   preserve a loophole   the Obama administration closed that allows coal companies to rip off taxpayers by allowing them to sell coal mined on federal lands to their own subsidiaries at artificially low prices and shirk royalty payment responsibilities.

1. Halted the first comprehensive review of the federal coal program in more than 30 years while simultaneously opening public lands for new leases to mine coal. Federal coal lease sales only bring in, on average,   $1 per ton in bids , and taxpayers are estimated to be losing   $1 billion annually   in lost royalty payments on undervalued coal sales.

1. Proposed major cuts to the Department of the Interior’s budget that would impair critical maintenance of our national parks while making a public show of supporting them.   A few weeks after proposing to cut   $1.5 billion, or 12 percent , from the Department of the Interior’s budget, President Trump had Press Secretary Sean Spicer ceremoniously hand a   $78,000 check —Trump’s first-quarter earnings—to Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke to help the National Park Service. Here’s the rub: Trump’s check only covers 0.01 percent of   $1.3 billion   in “critical systems deferred maintenance” that the National Park Service urgently needs.

1. Pulled the rug from under private investors backing conservation efforts.   As part of a sweeping   executive order   aimed at gutting actions the Obama administration took to address climate change, President Trump rescinded the   presidential memorandum   that encouraged private investment when developers work to mitigate impacts on natural resources. This action undercuts the economic and environmental gains that the fast-growing restoration industry has made recently to the tune of   $1.15 billion   between 2014 and 2015 in private capital invested in habitat conservation and water management. These relatively new environmental marketplaces rely on regulatory consistency that President Obama’s memorandum bolstered.

1. Declared open season on baby bears and wolves in wildlife refuges.   President Trump   overturned a rule   that had protected black bear mothers and their cubs from being hunted in their dens. The Obama administration’s “Fair Chase” rule, which applied to national wildlife refuges in Alaska, also limited baiting, trapping, and the use of aircrafts to track and shoot bears and wolves.

1. Moved to weaken air quality standards for ozone.   Ozone pollution is a key contributor to smog, which can cause more frequent asthma attacks and exacerbate lung diseases. President Trump’s EPA is moving toward changing   air quality standards established under the Obama administration to allow greater ozone pollution. Ground level ozone pollution can increase the frequency of asthma attacks, cause shortness of breath, aggravate lung diseases, and cause permanent damage to lungs through long-term exposure. Elevated ozone levels are linked to increases in hospitalizations, emergency room visits, and premature death, and can cause pronounced health   impacts   in children and the elderly.

1. Signed an executive order nullifying the “social cost of carbon.”   President Trump essentially determined that climate change has no cost by eliminating a critical   metric used to measure the benefit of cutting carbon pollution.  

1. Stopped rules that would limit dumping toxins from power plants.   Trump’s EPA is stopping   rules   that would limit the dumping of toxins, such as mercury and arsenic, and pollution from power plants into public waterways. These would have been the first protections in more than 30 years to curb toxins and other pollutants in power plants.

1. Changed standards to protect water and wildlife from lead poisoning.   Hours after riding a horse to his first day on the job, Secretary of the Interior Zinke   reversed a ban on using lead bullets for hunting in wildlife refuses. Lead content in these bullets can poison water and wildlife.

1. Opened the door to reducing methane pollution standards.   The president signed an executive order directing the EPA and the Bureau of Land Management to   review the methane pollution standards for oil and gas drilling facilities and determine whether to rescind or revise them. Methane pollution supercharges global warming   86 times   as much as carbon pollution.

1. Took steps to reverse progress to date on U.S. preparations for climate change. President Trump signed an   executive order   rescinding previous executive orders related to preparing the U.S. for climate change; encouraging private investment in efforts to mitigate pollution; and ensuring our national security plans consider climate change impacts.

1. Nominated an EPA administrator who denies scientific proof of climate change. EPA Administrator Pruitt   told   the media that he does not think carbon dioxide is the primary contributor to climate change. His statement is the climate science equivalent of saying the world is flat.

1. Proposed budget cuts to that will cause   5.7 million   low-income   residents to lose assistance with their heating bills and about 673,000 to lose cooling assistance. President Trump’s proposal to eliminate the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, or LIHEAP, will be especially dangerous as more states experience extreme weather.

Democracy and government reform  

1. Imperiled American voters with untrue claims about illegal voting . President Trump’s empty claims of widespread  fraud  undermine the integrity of our elections and lay the basis for voter suppression efforts that attack our constitutional right to participate in self-government. When government officials spread lies that call into question the legitimacy of our elections, people lose faith in the democratic process. Instead of responding to the clear and present dangers of  foreign interference  and discriminatory efforts to  keep  some American citizens from casting their ballots, Trump chooses to spread baseless slander while calling for a  witch hunt  against American voters.

1. Brought pay-to-play corruption to the presidency . The Trump family continues to  promote  their private business interests at home and abroad while profiting off of the presidency. Corruption, or even the appearance of corruption, diminishes trust in government and increases cynicism toward democratic institutions. At a time when  75 percent  of Americans already believe that corruption is widespread in government, President Trump’s blatant disregard for  ethics  rules and  constitutional  prohibitions on presidential enrichment further undermine democratic norms and threatens our democracy, economy, and national security.

1. Undermined transparency and accountability by continuing to hide his tax returns and withholding   White House visitor logs .   Due to his  refusal  to release his tax returns the full extent of President Trump’s indebtedness and foreign entanglements remains unknown. As a result, Americans cannot be sure that Trump is not providing favors and special treatment to his business partners or that foreign states and businesses are not leveraging influence over the Trump administration and its decisions. It is impossible for Trump to lead an effort to   revise  the tax code without Americans knowing how his proposals would line his own pocket. Changing the practice to stop disclosing White House visitor logs prevents the public from knowing who is accessing federal officials on a daily basis and keeps special interest influence shrouded in secrecy.

Immigration

1. Signed two Muslim and refugee bans, both of which have been enjoined by federal courts.   In   January , and then again in   March , President Trump signed executive orders banning immigrants from seven—and then, subsequently, six—Muslim-majority nations for at least three months and   halting the refugee program for four months. The January executive order sparked   widespread protests   at airports all across the country and was quickly blocked by a   federal court in Washington state and then by the   9th Circuit Court of Appeals . In early March, Trump signed a barely revised version of the original order, which   courts in Hawaii and Maryland   rightly acknowledged still constituted a Muslim and refugee ban. The core parts of the ban were once again put on hold.

1. Made every unauthorized immigrant a deportation priority, regardless of equities.   As a matter of the smart prioritization of resources, the Obama administration focused its immigration enforcement on   serious threats   to national security and public safety, as well as recent border crossers. Within days of taking office, Trump signed an executive order eliminating the Obama priorities, effectively   making all unauthorized immigrants   a priority for deportation, regardless of how long they have been in the country, their ties to families and communities, or other equities. In practice, this has meant that people like   Guadalupe García de Rayos , a mother of two from Arizona who has been in the U.S. for over two decades, and   Maribel Trujillo Diaz , a mother of four U.S.-born children have been deported.

1. Made immigrant survivors of domestic abuse and sexual assault afraid to turn to law enforcement for help.   Aggressive immigration enforcement by the Trump administration—including a case in El Paso, where immigration officials   arrested a victim of domestic abuse   at a courthouse after she received a protective order against her abuser—has made immigrants and Latinos, regardless of immigration status, increasingly   reluctant to come forward   to report crimes. Prosecutors in   Denver   have been forced to drop four domestic violence prosecutions because immigrant victims no longer wish to cooperate. Another domestic violence case in   Austin   hangs in limbo under similar circumstances. Since last year, Los Angeles has seen reports by Latinos of sexual assault decline by   25 percent , and Houston has seen reports by Latinos of rapes decline by nearly   43 percent . By making everyone a priority, the administration has made no one a priority to the   detriment of public safety .

1. Arrested multiple recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. Even though Trump has said that he will deal with young unauthorized immigrants with “ great heart ,” and even though Secretary of Homeland Security John F. Kelly has said that he is “ the best thing that happened to DACA ,” the Department of Homeland Security has detained at least five recipients of   DACA —which grants eligible young people a two-year reprieve from deportation and a work permit—since taking office. The detained include   Daniela Vargas ,   Daniel Ramirez ,   Edwin Romero ,   Josue Romero , and   Francisco Rodriguez . It is now also being   reported   that the Department of Homeland Security deported Dreamer Juan Manuel Montes while he was protected from deportation through DACA.

1. Threatened to take away critical community safety funding from so-called sanctuary jurisdictions.   As part of the January 25   executive order   on interior immigration enforcement, President Trump threatened to take away federal funds from   more than 600   so-called sanctuary jurisdictions that limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. On March 27 Attorney General Jeff Sessions   threatened   to revoke Department of Justice grants that, among other purposes, help local law enforcement to   eliminate barriers to processing rape kits ,   combat gang and gun crime , and   stop human trafficking . The attorney general’s comments were swiftly denounced by the   Fraternal Order of Police   and the   International Association of Chiefs of Police .   Research shows   that counties with sanctuary policies have lower crime rates and stronger economies than those without the policies.

1. Scared authorized immigrants away from accessing benefits and necessary health care for which they and their children are eligible.   Not long after the Trump administration took office, a   draft executive order   leaked, illustrating that the administration was   looking to target even legal immigrants living in the United S tates. Among other provisions, the draft order would make lawful permanent residents, or green card holders, eligible for deportation if they use any type of means-tested benefit. The mere possibility of the order, as well as increased immigration enforcement, has had a chilling effect on communities across the nation. In California, for example, the Alameda County Community Food Bank saw   40 families   cancel their food stamps and another 54 eligible families choose not to apply for food stamps.   Other reports   indicate that some immigrants are taking their names off of the list to receive baby formula or keeping children away from child care centers.

Faith

1. Trampled on the religious liberty of Muslims with his attempts at unconstitutional travel bans.   President Trump’s January 27   executive action   on refugees and revised March 6   executive action   both aimed to prohibit travel to the United States for nationals of Muslim-majority nations and fundamentally reshape the refugee admissions program to prioritize the claims of   Christians . Trumps actions have alienated the Muslims communities not only within the United States but also around the world, damaging critical relationships with national security allies.

1. Attempted to redefine religious liberty only for those who share a conservative Christian faith.   From the   anti-Muslim travel bans   to disturbing   Holocaust-denying remarks , the administration is a threat to religious minorities, many of whom are already vulnerable to rising incidents of   anti-Semitism   and   anti-Muslim bigotry .

1. Promises to   destroy the Johnson Amendment , which prevents nonprofit organizations—including houses of worship—from endorsing political candidates.   A   leaked draft executive order   indicates plans to insert religious exemptions in federal nondiscrimination protections, revealing a pattern of attempts to redefine the foundational value of religious freedom so it will only protect people of faith who share conservative Christian beliefs.

Gun violence prevention

1. Signed a law that weakens the firearms background check system and undermines enforcement of the current law that   prohibits   certain individuals with a serious mental illness from gun possession.   Using the shortcut process of the Congressional Review Act, President Trump   repealed   a Social Security Administration regulation that formalized the process by which the agency could provide to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, or NICS, the names of beneficiaries who—because of serious mental illness—are prohibited from gun possession under federal law. This action represents a significant step backward from recent efforts at the federal and state level to better enforce current law by ensuring that all records of prohibited purchasers are provided to NICS.

1. Made it easier for   fugitives   to buy guns.   Under   federal law , anyone who is “a fugitive from justice” is prohibited from buying and possessing guns. Since at least 2006, the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives have   disagreed   over the proper scope of this law, with the FBI adopting a position that it applies to all individuals with an outstanding arrest warrant while the ATF argued for a narrower interpretation that it applies only to individuals who had left the state where the warrant was issued. Because the FBI is the agency that operates the background check system, that agency’s interpretation prevailed. However, in February 2017, the Department of Justice issued new guidance resolving this dispute by adopting ATF’s   interpretation   and dramatically narrowing the category of individuals with active criminal warrants who will be prohibited from buying guns.

Health care

1. Attempted to repeal the ACA . Repeal of the ACA would cause significant stress and anxiety for millions of families who rely on it for coverage. The AHCA would have resulted in  24 million  more people being uninsured in 10 years—breaking President Trump’s   promise   to cover “everybody.” It would also have broken Trump’s campaign promise not to cut Medicaid.

1. Undermined the ACA marketplace.   The Trump administration has already undermined the ACA marketplace by refusing to officially abandon its efforts to repeal the law. In addition, its refusal to commit unequivocally to paying the cost-sharing reduction subsidies is generating  massive uncertainty  for insurers. This uncertainty is having a direct impact on the marketplace by encouraging insurers to quit the market in 2018 or raise premiums.

1. Began to undermine Medicaid . In a  letter to governors  by Secretary of Health and Human Services Tom Price and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma, the administration encouraged states to pursue harmful changes to their Medicaid programs, including work requirements and increased cost-sharing.

1. Made ACA marketplace enrollment more difficult.   In the final days of the most recent open enrollment period, the Trump administration cancelled Healthcare.gov TV ads and email outreach, which are critical in helping people remember the deadline and enroll in time. Although some of this was restored after a backlash, a former Healthcare.gov chief marketing officer  estimated  that the administration’s actions reduced enrollment by 480,000 people.

1. Stripped Title X funding.   With Vice President Mike Pence’s   tie-breaking vote , the Senate voted to overturn Obama era protections for Title X providers. Trump   signed the bill , which allows states to block Title X funding.   Title X   funding   provides critical reproductive, educational, and counseling services related to family planning and contraception to   4 million clients   each year.

1. Reinstated the Global Gag Rule.  One of Trump’s first actions as president was to reinstate the  Global Gag Rule , which prevents recipients of U.S. foreign aid from offering any information, referrals, services, or advocacy regarding abortion care—even if they do so with separate funding sources. The Global Gag Rule will lead to more maternal deaths, more unintended pregnancies, and higher rates of unsafe abortion.

1. Proposed cutting funds for the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program. The Trump budget proposes a  $50 million reduction  in funding for the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program, which works with organizations across the United States to implement evidence based, proven programming.

1. Proposed defunding Planned Parenthood.   President Trump’s health care bill, the AHCA, would  defund Planned Parenthood , which served   2.5 million patients   in 2014.

Higher education

1. Proposed deep cuts to programs that help make college more accessible and affordable for low-income students and students of color. President Trump’s budget proposed   more than $5 billion in cuts   to valuable programs, including the Pell Grant program and the work-study program, which provide needed funds to help low-income students afford the rising cost of college. The cuts also target important college-access programs—including TRIO and GEAR UP—that provide supports such as tutoring, mentoring, and research opportunities to low-income and first-generation students.

1. Rescinded protections for student loan borrowers.   On March 16, the Trump administration   withdrew measures   to protect struggling student loan borrowers and made repayment more difficult by allowing debt collectors to charge a 16 percent fee—even when the borrower agrees to make good on their debt within 60 days. On April 11, the Trump administration stripped away   important measures   that would hold student loan servicers accountable when their actions are not in the best interest of students. It has been   well-documented   that servicers sometimes place borrowers in repayment programs that could ultimately make it more difficult for them to repay their debt.

1. Failed to help students when a critical resource for financial aid and loan repayment was shut down.   In March 2017, with no advance warning, the IRS and U.S. Department of Education disabled a key web-based tool that helps millions of students apply for aid and repay their loans.   Failure to notify students   put financial aid applicants at risk of losing access to grant aid that helps pay for college and put student loan borrowers at risk of seeing their payments jump by hundreds of dollars.

1. Endangered students by appointing for-profit college officials to top positions. Robert Eitel, senior counselor to Secretary of Education DeVos,   joined   the administration well before he even left his job at Bridgepoint Education—a for-profit college company facing multiple federal investigations. And Taylor Hansen, a former   lobbyist   for for-profit colleges—whose father’s student loan debt-collection company sued the Obama administration—served on the department’s “beachhead” team.

1. Undercut students’ civil rights by naming skeptics to top civil rights positions . The nominee to serve as general counsel in the Department of Education, Carlos Muñiz,   defended   Florida State University against allegations that it protected a star quarterback from rape charges. And the new head of the Office for Civil Rights, Candice Jackson, has   claimed   she experienced discrimination for being white and   called   the women who accused President Trump of assault and harassment “fake victims.”

K-12 education

1. Proposed completely eliminating federal funding for after-school programs . In President Trump’s   budget , the administration   zeroed out   the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program, which provides $1.2 billion to districts across the country for after-school programs that support students and working families. This funding serves more than 1.6 million students participating in these programs.

1. Proposed completely eliminating federal funding to support teacher quality . In President Trump’s   budget , the administration zeroed out Title II of the Every Student Succeeds Act, which provides $2.4 billion to states and districts for teacher recruitment, training, retention, and support. This cut translates to a loss of 40,000 teacher salaries.

1. Nominated the   highly unqualified   and anti-public school Betsy DeVos as secretary of education.   DeVos’s only experience with education is as a   lobbyist and megadonor   pushing private school voucher schemes in states across the country. Instead of working to support public schools and the students that attend these schools, she has   called   public education a “dead end.”

1. Rescinded the Obama administration’s regulations that supported school accountability under the new Every Student Succeeds Act . Through the Congressional Review Act, Congress and President Trump   eliminated   key protections and guidance for states and districts to implement the law, leaving significant confusion at the state and local level. The Trump administration has also   signaled   that it will take a very lax enforcement stance with states, opening the door for states to ignore their responsibilities to protect vulnerable students.

1. Rescinded the Obama administration’s regulations that supported improving teacher preparation programs.   Through the Congressional Review Act, Congress and Trump   eliminated   requirements for states to make sure that teacher preparation programs are helping prospective teachers gain the skills needed to be successful in the classroom and support student learning. Without these regulations, states will continue to struggle to improve teacher preparation programs and support the most effective programs.

1. Proposed cutting $9 billion from public education while spending   $1.4 billion   on school choice . This   proposal   includes harmful private school voucher schemes and the creation of a new $250 million federal program that will allow taxpayer dollars to flow to private schools, which are not accountable; can discriminate in admissions and discipline; and are not subject to basic monitoring, oversight, and civil rights laws.

1. Proposed cutting crucial support for school reform efforts.   By zeroing out support for the AmeriCorps program, President Trump would undercut   many   of the most successful education organizations—from KIPP Public Charter Schools, to Teach For America, to City Year—that have had positive effects on students across the country and rely on that program.

Justice

1. Named Jeff Sessions, a long-time   opponent of civil rights , as attorney general, the top law enforcer in the nation.   Sessions  co-sponsored the First Amendment Defense Act , a draconian measure that prohibits the federal government from taking “discriminatory action” against any business or person that discriminates against LGBTQ people. The act aims to protect the right of all entities to refuse service to LGBTQ people based on two sets of religious   beliefs : “(1) marriage is or should be recognized as the union of one man and one woman, or (2) sexual relations are properly reserved to such a marriage.” As a federal prosecutor in 1983, Sessions   prosecuted a trio of voting rights activists   for voter fraud. As the chief enforcer of the civil rights laws of the United States, it is almost impossible to imagine how he will now protect the very community for which he endorsed discrimination.

1. Appointed Justice Neil Gorsuch—a judge with a long record of ruling against the rights  of workers ,  women , and  students with disabilities —to the Supreme Court. Justice Gorsuch will rule on fundamental constitutional issues—including civil rights, the role of money in politics, and reproductive rights. For example, he will soon vote on whether the Court should allow  North Carolina’s 2013 voting bill —which a lower court said targeted black voters with “almost surgical precision”—to remain in effect.

1. Pressured the Senate   to enact the “nuclear option” to get his Supreme Court nominee confirmed.   Nearly every other justice on the Court had bipartisan support and crossed the 60-vote threshold at some point during  their confirmation process , but many  senators objected  to President Trump’s nominee. The nuclear option means Senate leaders can now confirm Trump’s ideologically driven judges  with a simple majority .

1. Undermined the legitimacy of the court system.   As a candidate and as president, Trump has  attacked   judges  whose rulings he does not like and undermined the legitimacy of these courts.  He called  a judge who ruled against his discriminatory Muslim ban a “so-called judge.” During the campaign,  he said  that a Mexican-American judge could not be impartial in a lawsuit against Trump due to his ethnicity. These attacks on the third branch of government  undermine the founders’ separation of powers  as well as the very rule of law.

1. Nominated ideological extremists to federal courts.   The Trump administration is  already vetting conservative ideologues  to appoint to federal courts. President Trump’s nominations, particularly for seats on the  5th Circuit Court of Appeals , signal an aggressive push to  bend the federal judiciary ideologically . Trump has well   over 100 seats to fill —thanks to Senate obstruction during President Obama’s term—and Trump recently announced that the administration would  no longer seek the recommendation  from the nonpartisan American Bar Association.

1. Proposed eliminating the Legal Services Corporation . Already scarce access to justice will be put even further out of reach for  60.6 million low-income Americans  under President Trump’s proposal to eliminate the Legal Services Corporation—the nation’s main funding stream for civil legal services.

1. Tried but failed  to stop Baltimore police reform efforts.   Attorney General Sessions asked a court at the last minute not to accept a consent decree that was supported by the Baltimore police commissioner, mayor, community members, and career Department of Justice attorneys. The federal court   rejected Sessions’ motion , allowing needed police reforms that would build trust between the police and the communities they serve to proceed.

1. Attempted to   bring back the war on drugs .   The outdated strategy was ineffective and caused long-term devastation to thousands of families. Attorney General Sessions is implementing a tough-on-crime approach that would increase federal prosecutions and long prison sentences even for low-level, nonviolent offenders. Even as the Trump administration pushes outdated law-and-order policies, Democratic and Republican governors are  making progress  on sentencing reform, drug treatment, and alternatives to incarceration.

1. Supported outdated and ineffective criminal justice reforms that have a disproportionate impact on communities of color.   Attorney General Sessions should be focusing on the need for police reform; supporting innovative crime-reduction strategies; and ensuring drug treatment and alternatives to incarceration are available. Yet, instead, he has ordered a   review   of current pattern and practice cases of police misconduct where evidence and a clear record has shown a police department has acted with systemic misconduct. He has   also questioned   decades of research and science rejecting a tough-on-crime approach.

1. Reversed the Obama era Department of Justice’s order to   stop   contracting with private prison facilities . Private prisons create a perverse incentive to incarcerate more people since these companies are motivated to increase profit, which is generated only if there are more inmates filling their facilities. Private prisons that contracted with the Department of Justice were   found by the department   itself to be less efficient and have more issues with security and management.

Racial justice

1. Supported   economic policies   that are detrimental to communities of color.   Many of the budget cuts proposed by President Trump would cut key social service programs. For example,   41 percent of the 9 million   Women, Infants, and Children, or WIC, recipients are people of color. The budget also   eliminates   the Minority Business Development Agency, which promotes business development for people of color—the fastest growing segment of the population.

1. Supported education policies that   do not support   students of color.   The Trump administration supports cuts to Pell Grants and tuition assistance programs as well as cuts to after-school programs that would affect 1 in 4 African American students. The administration also supports voucher programs that do not encourage the success of students of color.

1. Pushed environmental policies that will negatively affect communities of color. As noted above, the EPA wants to   eradicate programs   dedicated to reducing exposure to lead paint, which disproportionately   affects communities of color . The EPA is also cutting funding for the   environmental justice office   that had just been set up to specifically deal with lead, pollution, and other issues facing communities of color.

LGBTQ

1. Turned a blind eye to illegal anti-transgender discrimination in schools.   The Trump administration   revoked Title IX guidance   issued by the   Department of Education   clarifying schools’ long-standing obligations under federal civil rights law to treat transgender students equally and with dignity. Transgender students face pervasive harassment and discrimination in schools, impeding these students’ ability to learn. Nearly   1 in 6   out transgender K-12 students have been forced to leave school because of this harassment.  

1. Erased LGBTQ people from federal surveys, making it impossible to know if government programs serve them fairly.   The Trump administration   removed questions   about LGBTQ people from key federal surveys about programs that serve seniors and people with disabilities, without which policymakers and advocates cannot ensure LGBTQ people have equal access to key government services such as Meals on Wheels. The administration also appears to have included—but then gone back and omitted—questions about LGBTQ people from the   American Community Survey , an annual survey that gathers information about Americans’ educational attainment, housing, and health coverage.

1. Appointed longtime opponents of LGBTQ rights—including members of anti-LGBTQ hate groups—to key administration positions.   Many of President Trump’s appointees, including Attorney General   Jeff Sessions   and Secretary of Health and Human Services   Tom Price , made their careers standing in the way of LGBTQ rights—and now, they’re in charge of agencies that enforce those very rights. The appointments get even more disturbing the closer you look: Trump tapped   Ken Blackwell , a former fellow at an anti-LGBTQ hate group, as a domestic policy adviser; selected leaders of the   hate group C-FAM   for the president’s delegation to the United Nations; and appointed   Roger Severino , a longtime opponent of transgender civil rights, to run the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights.

1. Proposed slashing funding for research to cure HIV/AIDS.   President Trump has proposed devastating cuts to health research, including   $6 billion in cuts   to the National Institutes of Health in the budget and a   $50 million cut   to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s HIV research and prevention programs. The administration has also pushed a   $300 million cut   to the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR—an extraordinarily successful program that provides lifesaving treatment to   11.5 million people   worldwide and has broad bipartisan support.

1. Barred refugees and asylum seekers fleeing anti-LGBTQ persecution from protection in the United States.   President Trump’s   refugee suspension   blocked LGBTQ Syrian and Iraqi refugees from finding protection in the United States,   leaving them stranded   in countries where they are persecuted. His policy of detaining all immigrants who enter at the southern border and expanding the populations targeted for deportation traps   LGBTQ asylum seekers   in   dangerous immigrant detention   facilities and   increases the risk   that they will be wrongly deported to countries where their lives are at risk. The administration also   decided to close   the only dedicated transgender immigrant detention pod in the country, leaving transgender immigrants in detention at risk.

National security

1. Made Americans less safe from the Islamic State, or IS.   The anti-Muslim bigotry of the Trump administration makes every American less safe by helping IS and other terrorist groups recruit followers. As one IS commander in Afghanistan   put it , the Trump administration’s “utter hate towards Muslims will make our job much easier because we can recruit thousands.” The original Muslim ban included Iraq, where Iraqi soldier fighting alongside U.S. forces against IS called it a “ betrayal .”

1. Made Americans more vulnerable to pandemic diseases such as Zika and Ebola . Massive cuts in aid, diplomacy, and health proposed in President Trump’s FY 2017 budget would end the Global Health Security account, which works to   prevent, detect, and respond   to infectious disease outbreaks around the world, including Ebola. In his proposed budget, Trump has also called for the   elimination   of funding for the Fogarty International Center, which supports global health research initiatives, including for infectious diseases research in developing countries.

1. Undermined American jobs and security by ceding global leadership to Beijing. President Trump has taken no actions to achieve more balanced trade with China. He recklessly toyed with overturning nearly 40 years of official policy recognizing “one China” but   backed down   during his first call with the Chinese president, showing that his threats were hollow. Trump and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson claimed they would stop China from building on disputed islands in the South China Sea, but China proceeds to do what it wants, where it wants. Trump’s summit with President Xi Jinping at his Mar-a-Lago resort resulted in no progress on any difficult issues. Beijing sees Washington as hot air with little substance. Trump’s all talk, no action approach is encouraging repression over freedom and making authoritarian leaders confident that repression will be tolerated.

1. Oversaw an increase in civilian deaths from U.S. military operations.   After years of decline, civilian deaths from U.S. military operations have surged under Trump, destroying families, undermining strategic aims, and providing a propaganda boon to U.S. enemies. U.S. military spokesperson Col. Joseph Scrocca   said   “[More civilian casualties] is probably detrimental to the strength of our coalition. And that’s exactly what ISIS is trying to target right now.” Civilian deaths in Iraq and Syria have   spiked   in 2017, already far surpassing the total for all of 2016. Trump’s first major raid as president, in Yemen in January, was   decided   over dinner in the White House—far outside the regular process—and resulted in dozens of civilian deaths.

1. Threatened national security and hurt the integrity of America’s democracy by an ongoing lack of transparency and refusal to disclose details about his finances and ties to Russia.   Americans cannot know who President Trump might owe money or what obligations or commitment he and his team could have to Russia or other foreign powers. Trump’s refusal to   condemn  the Russian government’s interference in the 2016 elections; release his tax returns; step away from his business; and support an independent commission and special counsel to get to the bottom of Russia’s influence over the 2016 election are a green light to Russians and others who want to meddle in U.S. democracy. All Americans from all political parties are vulnerable when foreign influence, money, and hacking can run roughshod though America’s democratic institutions.

This list is just a sample of the ways in which President Trump and his administration have already broken their promises to Americans and revealed their true priorities. As this list grows, real damage is being done to communities and working families across the nation. Trump should heed their calls to put the needs of ordinary Americans ahead of corporations and the wealthy.

WHO THE FUCK CHANGED THE ARTICLE IMAGE?

I’m thinking it was an inside job. Possibly a moderator gone rogue. There might be a clue in the image itself as it is not a very flattering picture. This could indicate the culprit could have a left leaning bias. 

I’m thinking it was an inside job. Possibly a moderator gone rogue. There might be a clue in the image itself as it is not a very flattering picture. This could indicate the culprit could have a left leaning bias.

Doubtful a left-leaning bias would manifest itself by replacing my avatar photo with a photo of Trump.

Otherwise, I am hoping Perrie can trace it back.

This is how tyrannical dictators deal with the MEDIA that doesn't run their propaganda … Fox is TRUMP's MINISTRY OF PROPAGANDA!

"And, in related news, the sky is falling!! Story at 11:00"

It's your country … 

In  1984 ,  there  are  four  government  ministries  which Winston mentions in the opening paragraph: The  Ministry  of Truth which is concerned with "news, entertainment, education and the fine arts." The  Ministry  of Peace which deals with matters relating to war. The  Ministry  of Love which maintains law and order in Oceania.

George Orwell 1984, The Propaganda Ministries of the Nazis.

George Orwell 1984, The Propaganda Ministries Of The Nazis.

George Orwell? Who is that dude.? (The name sounds vaguely familiar....)

George Orwell? Who is that dude.? (The name sounds vaguely familiar....)

As it turns out, A PROPHET!

• Propaganda must facilitate the displacement of aggression

  by specifying the targets for hatred.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Hatred ,  Target ,  Propaganda

• This is the secret of propaganda: Those who are to be persuaded by it should be completely immersed in the ideas of the propaganda, without ever noticing that they are being immersed in it.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Ideas ,  Secret ,  Propaganda

• The truth is the greatest enemy of the State.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Enemy ,  German History ,  Nazism

• ...the rank and file are usually much more primitive than we imagine. Propaganda must therefore always be essentially simple and repetitious.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Gun ,  Simple ,  Notable

• Think of the press as a great keyboard on which the government can play.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Peace ,  War ,  Thinking

• The most brilliant propagandist technique will yield no success unless one fundamental principle is borne in mind constantly - it must confine itself to a few points and repeat them over and over.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Truth ,  Yield ,  Media Control

• There will come a day, when all the lies will collapse under their own weight, and truth will again triumph.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Lying ,  Triumph ,  Weight

• Not every item of news should be published. Rather must those who control news policies endeavor to make every item of news serve a certain purpose.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Purpose ,  News ,  Propaganda

• We enter parliament in order to supply ourselves, in the arsenal of democracy, with its own weapons. If democracy is so stupid as to give us free tickets and salaries for this bear's work, that is its affair. We do not come as friends, nor even as neutrals. We come as enemies. As the wolf bursts into the flock, so we come.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Stupid ,  Order ,  Giving

• It is the absolute right of the State to supervise the formation of public opinion.

  Joseph Goebbels

  School ,  Political ,  Public Opinion

• It would not be impossible to prove with sufficient repetition and a psychological understanding of the people concerned that a square is in fact a circle. They are mere words, and words can be molded until they clothe ideas and disguise.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Circles ,  Ideas ,  Squares

• The bigger the lie, the more it will be believed.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Lying ,  Bigger

• We shall reach our goal, when we have the power to laugh as we destroy, as we smash, whatever was sacred to us as tradition, as education, and as human affection.

  Joseph Goebbels
  Goal ,  Laughing ,  Sacred
  The essence of propaganda consists in winning people over to an idea so sincerely, so vitally, that in the end they succumb to it utterly and can never escape from it.
  Joseph Goebbels
  Winning ,  Essence ,  Ideas

• If you tell a lie long enough, it becomes the truth.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Lying ,  Long ,  Interesting

• A Jew is for me an object of disgust. I feel like vomiting when I see one. Christ could not possibly have been a Jew. It is not necessary to prove that scientifically - it is a fact. I do not need to prove this with science or scholarship. It is so!

  Joseph Goebbels

  Holocaust ,  Needs ,  Vomiting

• The masses need something that will give them a thrill of horror.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Giving ,  Needs ,  Thrill

• There is no need for propaganda to be rich in intellectual content.

  Joseph Goebbels

  War ,  Drug ,  Intellectual

• Whoever can conquer the street will one day conquer the state, for every form of power politics and any dictatorship-run state has its roots in the street.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Running ,  Roots ,  History

• It is not propaganda’s task to be intelligent, its task is to lead to success.

  Joseph Goebbels

  Intelligent ,  Tasks ,  Propaganda

• A media system wants ostensible diversity that conceals an actual uniformity

  Joseph Goebbels

Comparing the US to Nazi Germany is rather silly, isn't it?

Comparing the US to Nazi Germany is rather silly, isn't it?

Only to those who refuse to see, or, who lack the acuity to recognize the obvious similarities in the tactics and propaganda.

Trump and his followers respond to bigotry, xenophobia, misogyny, bullying and dismissing all that they want not to hear, as "fake news."

Your comment makes no attempt to specifically address any of the Goebbels quotes; instead, you post a dismissive, adolescent-like, rhetorical question … Trump-like and substance-void.

And, in the event you go to Godwin's Rule, know that he also posited a corollary …  Godwin's law itself can be abused as a distraction, diversion or even as  censorship , fallaciously miscasting an opponent's argument as  hyperbole  when the comparisons made by the argument are actually appropriate. ^{[9] [10]}  

He should compare CNN with the propaganda arm of the Nazi party it would be fitting.

Why don't you do it … make specific points to validate your implied comparison … otherwise, your comment is dismissive and a variation of gang-banging.

Make an actual case, and if you cannot or do not, going forward, stay away from the Trumpian empty rhetoric zeal-without-knowledge ad hominem stuff.

Come on man watch CNN for one minute and try to tell me with a straight face they are fair or balanced.

Once again, a dismissive comment without any attempt to specifically validate your assertion.

Left, agreed, but not extreme. And I respect your effort to make a specific argument.

NOTE: The article image was changed via a glitch … no problem. 

I understand that many Trump supporters are thrilled that media other than Fox are under attack by Trump … to which I say …

"Do you not understand what happens in countries where authoritarian heads-of-state control all "news" except that which favors them and denigrates their opposition?"

If you don't, you'd better read the history because, if you think your Great White Hope will make America Great Again … in the image you envision and desire …

You will be fucked along with the people you hate.

You won't have to worry about "redistribution of wealth" because the authoritarian and his oligarchy (like in Putin's Russia), will suck all the resources from the citizenry, and, unless you're on the inside, you'll be among those sucked …

… and fucked!

Wise the hell up and don't allow your bigotry and resentments to do what has been done historically and presently in other countries.

Yes we understand that's why we are opposed to the liberal bias in MSM that is an arm of the Democratic party. We've been saying this for years and when they praised everything Obama did we were criticized for pointing it out. 

Yes we understand that's why we are opposed to the liberal bias in MSM that is an arm of the Democratic party. We've been saying this for years and when they praised everything Obama did we were criticized for pointing it out. 

No, you don't understand, Dean … when the media, the courts and law enforcement are controlled by those who feed you the naive bullshit you just spouted … then you'll begin to get it.

The first or second time you discover that there's no more government of, for and or by the people … that things really ARE RIGGED IN FAVOR OF A CORRUPT, CRIMINAL OLIGARCHY … that you're pissing into the wind if you try to invoke your first, fifth, fourteenth and other Amendments … you'll experience the creeping, and, ultimately galloping reality, that, to the Great White Hope you so willingly believed … you were just suckered victim of your own myopic delusions, just another grunt whose whiteness doesn't mean shit!

Oh! Don't get me wrong, Dean; your whiteness will find favor with "Big Brother," although he who will no longer be your Jess Willard; your whiteness will be pandered to, that in order for your long-lost Willard to continuously pummel you with the hate screed that "things are the way they are because of those no good fuckin' dark people! And you'll buy it until you or a family member or a friend who dared to speak truth to power … ain't around any more.

Go ahead, Dean, let Trump reinforce your beliefs about those who you think are "the problem." 

But in reality, individuals who march into hell with the hater-in-chief … they are the problem … and they will be among the victims … because …

"Whoever troubles his own household will inherit the wind, and the fool will be servant to the wise of heart."

THIS IS A DANGER TO DEMOCRACY!

It appears that Trump's people are beginning to figure out the inherent dangers to democracy generated by his statement in the now removed (from YouTube) video I posted yesterday; possibly, someone with an upper level double-digit IQ in Trump World, has finally heard the political footsteps that come behind such statements, in this instance …

"THE PRESS/MEDIA IS THE ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE!"

Trump's Attack on Media as 'Enemy of the People' Has Historic Echoes

" There is no evidence that Trump was aware of the historic connotations of the phrase when he wrote his tweet  … one would hope "American presidents would be educated enough to know something like that."

voanews