Category: Domestic Affairs,

Donna Brazile’s Curious Account of the 2016 Election – The Atlantic

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Media and Culture,Leave a comment

For anyone who watched the 2016 campaign, it’s surreal to see Brazile’s overtures to Sanders and to see her complaining that the DNC had been in the tank for Hillary Clinton. Brazile is not a product of the Clinton machine…

…But by the 2016 race, she was ready to join the Clinton bandwagon. As hacked DNC emails would later show, she even passed Democratic primary-debate questions—obtained through her position as a CNN political analyst—to Clinton. When this was revealed, it earned Brazile the heated enmity of many Sanders backers. Given that she was a vice chair of the DNC, it also fed the already-strong impression that it heavily favored Clinton.

…The fact that the Democratic Party apparatus would lean toward Clinton—a former senator and first lady, the wife of a former Democratic president, and part of a family whose patronage had largely shaped the current party—over Sanders, who didn’t even serve as a Democrat in the Senate, was not a shock. Even so, Sanders’s campaign had been blowing the whistle on the Victory Fund for months. 

…While it’s hard to argue with Brazile’s position that “Debbie was not a good manager,” or to disagree that Wasserman Schultz should have kept officers better in the loop, this hardly exculpates Brazile. As a DNC officer, she should have been asking more questions of both the chair and other top officials, and she apparently didn’t.

Donna Brazile’s Curious Account of the 2016 Election – The Atlantic

Still haven’t seen anyone call Ms. Brazile out on having waited so long to share this very, very pertinent information about the inner orchestrations of the DNC with voters. Am I the only one who finds it striking that could have attempted to right the ship and instead she prioritized book sales?

Brazile on Clinton Campaign’s Influence DNC 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Money, Class, and Poverty,Leave a comment

Gary [Gensler, the chief financial officer of Hillary’s campaign] said the campaign had to do it or the party would collapse.

“That was the deal that Robby struck with Debbie,” he explained, referring to campaign manager Robby Mook. “It was to sustain the DNC. We sent the party nearly $20 million from September until the convention, and more to prepare for the election.”

…Officials from Hillary’s campaign had taken a look at the DNC’s books. Obama left the party $24 million in debt—$15 million in bank debt and more than $8 million owed to vendors after the 2012 campaign—and had been paying that off very slowly. Obama’s campaign was not scheduled to pay it off until 2016. Hillary for America (the campaign) and the Hillary Victory Fund (its joint fundraising vehicle with the DNC) had taken care of 80 percent of the remaining debt in 2016, about $10 million, and had placed the party on an allowance.

…The party chair usually shrinks the staff between presidential election campaigns, but Debbie had chosen not to do that. She had stuck lots of consultants on the DNC payroll, and Obama’s consultants were being financed by the DNC, too.

…I knew that Debbie had outsourced a lot of the management of the party and had not been the greatest at fundraising.

…When the party chooses the nominee, the custom is that the candidate’s team starts to exercise more control over the party. If the party has an incumbent candidate, as was the case with Clinton in 1996 or Obama in 2012, this kind of arrangement is seamless because the party already is under the control of the president. When you have an open contest without an incumbent and competitive primaries, the party comes under the candidate’s control only after the nominee is certain. When I was manager of Al Gore’s campaign in 2000, we started inserting our people into the DNC in June. This victory fund agreement, however, had been signed in August 2015, just four months after Hillary announced her candidacy and nearly a year before she officially had the nomination.

Inside Hillary Clinton’s Secret Takeover of the DNC – POLITICO Magazine

hmmm

Georgia attorney general quits defense in server wiping case

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

The Georgia attorney general’s office will no longer represent the state’s top elections official in an elections integrity lawsuit filed three days before a crucial computer server was quietly wiped clean.

The lawsuit aims to force Georgia to retire its antiquated and heavily questioned touchscreen election technology, which does not provide an auditable paper trail.

The server in question was a statewide staging location for key election-related data. It made headlines in June after a security expert disclosed a gaping security hole that wasn’t fixed for six months after he first reported it to election authorities. Personal data was exposed for Georgia’s 6.7 million voters, as were passwords used by county officials to access files.

Georgia attorney general quits defense in server wiping case

hmmmm

Evidence mounts that Sessions perjured himself under Senator Franken’s questioning

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

Sessions told Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) at the January hearing that he was “not aware” of evidence that anyone affiliated with the Trump campaign communicated with the Russian government during the campaign, according to the New Republic.

He walked back those claims last month during another Senate hearing, telling Franken he “conducted no improper discussions with Russians at any time regarding the campaign or any other item facing this country.”

But court filings, and a new CNN report, show he was aware of evidence that at least one campaign associate was in contact with Russia.

…“The good news for Sessions is that he can plausibly claim to have opposed any Russian collusion,” writes the New Republic‘s Jeet Heer. “The bad news is that, in making those claims, he opens himself up to charges of perjury.”

BUSTED: Evidence mounts that Jeff Sessions perjured himself under Al Franken questioning

hmmm

Gitmo Judge Convicts U.S. General—Because He Stood Up for Detainee Rights

On By peanutgallerynhIn American Injustice System,, Military,Leave a comment

Brigadier General John Baker protested the government’s surveillance of Guantanamo Bay defense lawyers. And that got him sentenced to 21 days in confinement.

…Baker is a senior officer within in the highly controversial military commissions process: the Chief of Defense Counsel. 

“The military commissions are willing to put people in jail for defending the rule of law,” Jay Connell, who represents another Guantanamo detainee facing a military commission, told The Daily Beast.

…Earlier this month, three civilian attorneys for Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, the accused bomber of the USS Cole in 2000, abruptly quit the death-penalty case. The attorneys said that they had significant reason to believe the government was listening in to their communications. [They were] barred them from discussing the issue with Nashiri, since it was classified. [Which means,] Nashiri had lost his lawyers without ever knowing exactly why.

Gitmo Judge Convicts U.S. General—Because He Stood Up for Detainee Rights

wild.

Sam Clovis, Trump nominee for Agriculture post, withdraws amid Russia probe 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

Sam Clovis, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be the Department of Agriculture’s chief scientist, withdrew himself from consideration Thursday, the White House announced.

…Questions are swirling over Clovis’ relationship with George Papadopoulos — the Trump campaign foreign policy adviser who has admitted to making a false statement to the FBI regarding his interactions with foreign officials close to the Russian government — and a trip Papadopoulos took during the election where he met with a Russian figure.

…The Washington Post reported earlier this week that Clovis was one of the campaign officials referred to in court documents who Papadopoulos was emailing with.

…Clovis, a former conservative radio talk show host in Iowa who was a frequent guest on CNN during the election, became an early supporter of Trump’s two years ago. He quickly rose through the ranks of the campaign after Trump’s strong finish in the Iowa caucuses, taking a national role in the organization as officials scrambled to build a campaign team.
Clovis, a novice to national presidential campaigns, was supervising Papadopoulos and became a visible spokesman for Trump on CNN and other networks.

…Trump had picked Clovis for the position despite him not having a background in science, and that lack of experience, alongside a history of racially charged and homophobic comments, made his nomination particularly controversial.

…Clovis previously argued that protections for LGBT people would lead to protections for pedophilia, and as a radio host and political activist, he promoted the hoax that former President Barack Obama was not born in the US. Likewise, he called Obama a “Maoist” and said Attorney General Eric Holder is a “racist black.”

Sam Clovis, Trump nominee for top Agriculture post, withdraws amid Russia probe – CNNPolitics

hmmmm

Awaiting Trump’s coal comeback, miners reject retraining

On By peanutgallerynhIn Infrastructure and Transportation,, Money, Class, and Poverty,Leave a comment

Despite broad consensus about coal’s bleak future, a years-long effort to diversify the economy of this hard-hit region away from mining is stumbling, with Obama-era jobs retraining classes undersubscribed and future programs at risk under President Donald Trump’s proposed 2018 budget.

…Hundreds of coal-fired plants have closed in recent years, and cheap natural gas continues to erode domestic demand. The Appalachian region has lost about 33,500 mining jobs since 2011, according to the Appalachian Regional Commission.

Although there have been small gains in coal output and hiring this year, driven by foreign demand, production levels remain near lows hit in 1978.

…“The coal industry has stabilized, but it’s not going to come back,” said Blair Zimmerman, a 40-year veteran of the mines who is now the commissioner for Greene County, one of Pennsylvania’s oldest coal regions.

… Coal miners are resisting retraining without ready jobs from new industries, but new companies are unlikely to move here without a trained workforce. The stalled diversification push leaves some of the nation’s poorest areas with no clear path to prosperity.

…They say mining pays well; other industries are unfamiliar; and there’s no income during training and no guarantee of a job afterward.

…Coal jobs are preferable to those in natural gas, they said, because the mines are close to home, while pipeline work requires travel.

Awaiting Trump’s coal comeback, miners reject retraining

hmmm

 

 

Poll: Americans Were Sort of Hoping Mueller Would Arrest Someone New Every Day 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

Perhaps in response to the poll results, Mueller on Thursday issued the following official statement: “I understand people’s eagerness for more arrests, but all I can say is that if they’re patient we have some new ones coming up that are just amazing.”

Poll: Americans Were Sort of Hoping Mueller Would Arrest Someone New Every Day | The New Yorker

Heh

Here come the state-level charges against Jared Kushner that Donald Trump can’t pardon 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

The Attorney General of Maryland is now investigating Jared Kushner’s family business for a number of serious alleged violations in the real estate field That doesn’t mean that Kushner or anyone in his family is guilty. Nor does it mean that charges will be brought. But these investigations tend to lead to charges more often than not. If Kushner is hypothetically charged with state level crimes, Donald Trump can’t pardon those.

Here come the state-level charges against Jared Kushner that Donald Trump can’t pardon – Palmer Report

hmmmm

Thousands attended protest organized by Russians on Facebook | TheHill

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Media and Culture,, Race,Leave a comment

Thousands of Americans attended a march last November organized by a Russian group that used social media to interfere in the 2016 election.

…The BlackMatters organizing group was connected to the Internet Research Agency, a Russian “troll farm” with ties to the Kremlin, according to a recent investigation by the Russian Magazine RBC. Facebook has identified the Internet Research Agency as the group responsible for purchasing 3,000 political ads on Facebook’s platform and operating 470 accounts that appear to have attempted to influence the perspectives of Americans during the 2016 elections.

…According to numbers in Facebook’s general counsel’s leaked congressional testimony, the number of people potentially touched by organic content eclipses the potential number reached by ads by hundreds of millions. 

BlackMatters had organized other protests, but none revealed so far reached the level of support that the Nov. 12 protest did — in many cases, the organization’s events fizzled out and didn’t come to fruition. Others that actually did take place had a limited and isolated reach.

Other events that appear to be organized by the group tended to focus on rallies around race flash points, including the deaths of black men killed by law enforcement, The Hill found after reviewing 15 events by the organization. Others claimed to offer free legal education for immigrants.

One event was shared with 1,300 users on Facebook, of which 240 ultimately said that they would attend the “One Person One Vote One March,” on Dec. 3 in New York City, a protest against the electoral college. But it’s unclear if the event actually occurred and, if it did, how many people attended. 

Thousands attended protest organized by Russians on Facebook | TheHill

hmmmm

How Facebook, Google and Twitter ’embeds’ shape the campaign in 2016 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Media and Culture,Leave a comment

Facebook, Twitter and Google played a far deeper role in Donald Trump’s presidential campaign than has previously been disclosed, with company employees taking on the kind of political strategizing that campaigns typically entrust to their own staff or paid consultants, according to a new study released Thursday.

…While the companies call it standard practice to work hand-in-hand with high-spending advertisers like political campaigns, the new research details how the staffers assigned to the 2016 candidates frequently acted more like political operatives, doing things like suggesting methods to target difficult-to-reach voters online, helping to tee up responses to likely lines of attack during debates, and scanning candidate calendars to recommend ad pushes around upcoming speeches.

Such support was critical for the Trump campaign, which didn’t invest heavily in its own digital operations during the primary season and made extensive use of Facebook, Twitter and Google “embeds” for the general election.

…One constant in the dynamic: The companies break down their political outreach teams along party lines. Facebook’s point of contact to Clinton’s 2016 White House run, Crystal Patterson, was a veteran of Democratic politics, and Henke — Google’s liaison to the Trump operation and other 2016 Republican bids — was once the director of operations for the Western Republican Leadership Conference.

How Facebook, Google and Twitter ’embeds’ helped Trump in 2016 – POLITICO

hmmmm

Five Ways the Trumps Have Gotten Richer Since the Election

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Money, Class, and Poverty,Leave a comment

1. Trump’s continued global business ventures, despite vows of “no new foreign deals”

2. Business is booming at Mar-a-Lago

3. Trump’s new hotel in Washington raked in $20 million in its first few months

4. The first family profits from visits to Trump-branded properties and golf courses

5. Trump-branded book royalties are soaring

Five Ways the Trumps Have Gotten Richer Since the Election

Sigh….

Trump Campaign Staffer Pled Guilty to Lying to FBI Months Ago

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

Pro Tip: Lying to the FBI is never a good idea.

Pro Tip II: It would seem to be a very good bet that Papadopoulous already has flipped. (The plea deal’s sentence recommendation begins at “zero” months, which is a tell.)

Releasing the Papadopolous plea deal was a remarkably deft play by Mueller, whose political savvy is mysteriously under-discussed. The initial White House reaction to the news about Paul Manafort was that everything happened years ago, and what the hell is Mueller doing? Now, we have a completed legal proceeding containing the words “Trump campaign,” “Russia,” and “disparaging information on Hillary Clinton.” Alibis are dropping like the autumn leaves.

Trump Campaign Staffer George Papadopoulos Pled Guilty to Lying to FBI

hmmmm

George Papadopoulos: The Mueller Probe’s First Guilty Plea

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

The biggest revelation in the plea agreement concerns an April 26 meeting in London. Papadopoulos met with the Professor, who told him that the Russians had “dirt” on Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. The government filing says the Professor said that “the Russians had emails of Clinton,” and in fact “thousands of emails.”

…The FBI first interviewed Papadopoulos in late January, before Mueller was appointed special counsel. Papadopoulos made multiple false statements during that meeting, claiming for example that his conversation with the Professor about the emails preceded his work for the Trump campaign. He also downplayed his contacts with the female Russian national and claimed they’d taken place before he joined the Trump campaign. After meeting with the FBI again in February, Papadopoulos deleted his Facebook account and got a new cellphone number. Then, on July 27, 2017, Papadopoulos was arrested upon arriving at Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C.

…Papadopoulos’s plea is notable because it represents a guilty plea by a Trump campaign official related to ties with Russia. The fact that he was arrested in July, but that Mueller managed to keep his case against him secret until Monday morning, is a reminder of how tight-lipped the special counsel’s team has proven, and that Mueller may know things that have not yet been publicly reported or disclosed. The plea deal indicates that Papadopoulos is now cooperating with the probe. 

George Papadopoulos: The Mueller Probe’s First Guilty Plea – The Atlantic

hmmmm

How Vets And Doctors Get Around The VA’s Medical Marijuana Policy

On By peanutgallerynhIn American Injustice System,, Drugs & Drink,, Military,Leave a comment

“While on federal property in a federal rehab program, [veterans] can be allowed to use a federally illegal substance,” Fruchter told Task & Purpose by phone. “On a patient-doctor level, if this is what you want, it’s doable.” Through a combination of persistence, vague regulations, and an open-minded medical team, Fruchter had stumbled upon an unusual loophole in the VA’s approach to medical marijuana — one that is putting individual VA clinics at odds with the department’s publicly stated policy.

How Vets And Doctors Get Around The VA’s Medical Marijuana Policy

hmmmm

Trump’s spin on Manafort indictment just raises more questions 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

Manafort turned himself in on Monday morning after being indicted on Friday along with his former business partner Rick Gates, according to CNN. The indictment against Manafort and Gates contains 12 counts, ranging from conspiracy against the United States and conspiracy to launder money to making false and misleading statements to the U.S. Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).

In response to this development, which many Washington insiders are speculating could be a ploy to get Manafort to flip on members of the Trump administration or even Trump himself, the White House has been playing it cool.

: Trump’s spin on Manafort indictment just raises more questions – Salon.com

hmmm