Mueller Investigated Sessions for Perjury on Russia Statements

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

Special Counsel Robert Mueller and the FBI investigated Attorney General Jeff Sessions last year for misleading lawmakers about his contacts with Russians before eventually closing that part of the case, according to three people with knowledge of the matter.

The investigation, which examined statements Sessions made last year during his confirmation process to become attorney general, was authorized by former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe.

Mueller Investigated Sessions for Perjury on Russia Statements – Bloomberg

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All The White Supremacists Running For Office In 2018

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Race,Leave a comment

Arthur Jones: Neo-Nazi running for Congress in Illinois

Paul Nehlen: White-Nationalist running for Congress in Wisconsin

Sean Donahue: Paranoid White Hater running for Congress in Pennsylvania

John Abarr: White Supremacist running for State Representative in Montana

Joe Arpaio: America’s Most Racist and Criminal Sheriff

Steve King: Iowa Congressman who is a blatant White Supremacist

Corey Stewart: White Nationalist running for Senate in Virginia

Matt Gaetz: Florida Congressman who pals around with Alex Jones, Holocaust deniers and other loser assholes

Dana Rohrabacher: California Congressman who hangs out with Holocaust deniers

Lou Barletta: Anti-Semitic Congressman running for Senate in Pennsylvania

All The White Supremacists Running For Office In 2018 | HuffPost

Oh, and they’re all GOP. Except Abarr, who has run as a Republican in the past.

…But you could have guessed that part, right?

Saudi Crown Prince Boasted That Jared Kushner Was “In His Pocket”

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

In late October, Jared Kushner made an unannounced trip to Riyadh, catching some intelligence officials off guard. “The two princes are said to have stayed up until nearly 4 a.m. several nights, swapping stories and planning strategy,” the Washington Post’s David Ignatius reported at the time.

…One of the people MBS told about the discussion with Kushner was UAE Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, according to a source who talks frequently to confidants of the Saudi and Emirati rulers. MBS bragged to the Emirati crown prince and others that Kushner was “in his pocket,” the source told The Intercept.

…Kushner’s support for Saudi Arabia and the UAE over Qatar in the Gulf crisis has raised questions about a possible conflict of interest. Kushner backed the blockade a month after Qatar’s ministry of finance rebuffed an attempt by Kushner’s real estate firm, Kushner Companies, to extract financing for the firm’s troubled flagship property at 666 Fifth Avenue.

Saudi Crown Prince Boasted That Jared Kushner Was “In His Pocket”

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Cambridge Analytica Execs Bragged Of Using Fake News, Sex To Sway Elections

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

During phone calls and in-person meetings at a London hotel from November 2017 to January 2018, Nix was recorded bragging that his firm and parent company Strategic Communications Laboratories (SCL) secretly influenced more than 200 elections around the world, including those in Nigeria, Kenya, the Czech Republic, India and Argentina.

Cambridge Analytica was also hired by President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign. The firm recently made news for using data acquired by Facebook to build “psychographic profiles” about voters without their knowledge.

According to Channel 4′s meetings with Nix, his firm’s methods for influencing an election included putting certain politicians in compromising positions and secretly recording them, as well as conducting their work using fake IDs, websites, and under different company names so that the company’s relationship with the client is not publicly known.

…During another interview in January, Nix reportedly said that one method of finding dirt on a candidate was to essentially create it.

…In another example, the CEO reportedly said the firm will “send some girls,” specifically Ukranian women, to a candidate’s house to seduce the individual, an act that Nix said “works very well.”

…Other methods involved making the public believe inaccurate facts about a certain candidate.

“I mean, it sounds a dreadful thing to say, but these are things that don’t necessarily need to be true, as long as they’re believed,” he said.

Cambridge Analytica Execs Bragged Of Using Fake News, Sex To Sway Elections | HuffPost

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Why Are White Men Stockpiling Guns?

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

Since the 2008 election of President Obama, the number of firearms manufactured in the U.S. has tripled, while imports have doubled. This doesn’t mean more households have guns than ever before—that percentage has stayed fairly steady for decades. Rather, more guns are being stockpiled by a small number of individuals. Three percent of the population now owns half of the country’s firearms, says a recent, definitive study from the Injury Control Research Center at Harvard University.

…According to a growing number of scientific studies, the kind of man who stockpiles weapons or applies for a concealed-carry license meets a very specific profile.

These are men who are anxious about their ability to protect their families, insecure about their place in the job market, and beset by racial fears. They tend to be less educated. For the most part, they don’t appear to be religious—and, suggests one study, faith seems to reduce their attachment to guns. …Taken together, these studies describe a population that is struggling to find a new story—one in which they are once again the heroes.

…For these economically insecure, irreligious white men, “the gun is a ubiquitous symbol of power and independence, two things white males are worried about,” says Froese. “Guns, therefore, provide a way to regain their masculinity, which they perceive has been eroded by increasing economic impotency.”

…“Put simply, owners who are more attached to their guns are most likely to believe that guns are a solution to our social ills,” says Froese. “For them, more ‘good’ people with guns would drastically reduce violence and increase civility. Again, it reflects a hero narrative, which many white man long to feel a part of.”

Stroud’s work echoes this conclusion. “They tell themselves all kinds of stories about criminals and criminal victimization,” she says. “But the story isn’t just about criminals. It’s about the good guy—and that’s how they see themselves: ‘I work hard, I take care of my family, and there are people who aren’t like that.’ When we tell stories about the Other, we’re really telling stories about ourselves.”

Why Are White Men Stockpiling Guns? – Scientific American Blog Network

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ex-Facebook insider says covert data harvesting was routine

On By peanutgallerynhIn Media and Culture,, Privacy,Leave a comment

Parakilas, 38, who now works as a product manager for Uber, is particularly critical of Facebook’s previous policy of allowing developers to access the personal data of friends of people who used apps on the platform, without the knowledge or express consent of those friends.

That feature, called friends permission, was a boon to outside software developers who, from 2007 onwards, were given permission by Facebook to build quizzes and games – like the widely popular FarmVille – that were hosted on the platform.

…Facebook took a 30% cut of payments made through apps, but in return enabled their creators to have access to Facebook user data.

…While the previous policy of giving developers access to Facebook users’ friends’ data was sanctioned in the small print in Facebook’s terms and conditions, and users could block such data sharing by changing their settings, Parakilas said he believed the policy was problematic.

“It was well understood in the company that that presented a risk,” he said. “Facebook was giving data of people who had not authorised the app themselves, and was relying on terms of service and settings that people didn’t read or understand.”

‘Utterly horrifying’: ex-Facebook insider says covert data harvesting was routine | News | The Guardian

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Ex-Playboy Model Sues So She Can Talk About Her Alleged Affair With Trump

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

Experts, as well as former A.M.I. employees, say the practice of purchasing and and burying stories that are potentially harmful to high-profile individuals is a practice known in the tabloid industry as “catch and kill.”

…Trump and his lawyer/fixer Michael Cohen are suing Stormy Daniels for $20 million dollars in what many view as an effort to silence the adult film star. Daniels recently passed a polygraph test about the affair and recorded an interview with 60 Minutes which airs this weekend.

Ex-Playboy Model Sues So She Can Talk About Her Alleged Affair With Trump

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Parkland shooting survivors visit CPS students to plan Chicago gun control march

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

Survivors of the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida, visited Chicago Public Schools students Saturday to brainstorm ideas for next weekend’s March for Our Lives demonstration in Chicago.

…Emma Gonzalez, Sam Zeif and Evelyn Schentrup — who lost her sister Carmen in the Parkland shooting — said they traveled to Chicago to show their support and to continue to urge legislators to pass “common-sense gun measures.”

Zeif said he feels the pain of the students in Chicago, calling it “heartbreaking to know they’ve been feeling this pain and fear for nearly their whole lives.” He said he hopes stronger gun control can curb that pain and fear.

“My personal goal for this is so that my younger brother, and even younger brother, and my kids and their kids, can go to school without having to worry for their lives,” Zeif said. “I want us to complete this campaign of gun reform and remove gun violence from our country so that no one has to go through what we’ve gone through.”

Parkland shooting survivors visit CPS students to plan Chicago gun control march | Chicago Sun-Times

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‘Our Pain Has Made Us Like Family’: Chicago Student On Gun Violence After Parkland

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

“Well, what’s been going on in Chicago for years is just shootings after shootings after shootings. No, it’s really not school shootings that are happening in Chicago. But still, gun violence is gun violence. That weekend of the Parkland, Florida, shooting, six were killed and 22 were wounded in Chicago [in shootings].”

“We talked about how our pain has made us like family. Our pain is what brought us together, our trauma is what brought us together, and how this isn’t a color thing, this isn’t a social status thing, this isn’t a division between anything, because trauma is nationwide, pain is nationwide, gun violence is nationwide.”

‘Our Pain Has Made Us Like Family’: Chicago Student On Gun Violence After Parkland | Here & Now

What a terrible way to come together but I am glad that they did.

Trump campaign co-chair gets 20 years for sexual abuse and trafficking teens

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

According to the report, Nolan, 71, a former judge, used drugs and threats of arrest to force women and girls under the age of 18 into sex acts.

…According to a report read by Judge Kathleen Lape, Nolan paid some victims with heroin and painkillers in exchange for sex and threatened at least one victim, who lived on his property in southern Campbell County, with eviction unless she performed sex acts on him.

Pleading guilty to 21 of the counts filed against him — for crimes committed dating back to 2004 — Nolan accepted a plea deal where he will serve 20 years in prison and pay a $100,000 fine, becoming eligible for parole in four years, his attorney stated.

Some of the incidents occurred in the summer of 2016 while Judge Nolan was serving as the chair of the Donald Trump campaign in Campbell County, KY.

Trump campaign co-chair gets 20 years for sexual abuse and trafficking teens

Seems like exactly the kind of guy the Trumps associate with.

Ivanka Trump Called Out For ‘Cosplaying’ As A Scientist In Latest Weird Photo Op

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

 

Ivanka Trump Called Out For ‘Cosplaying’ As A Scientist In Latest Weird Photo Op

Oh look, Kremlin Barbie is cos-playing as someone with a brain. Awwwwww… Such a good try!

Paul Ryan sold shares on same day as private briefing of banking crisis

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

Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney’s vice-presidential running mate, sold stock in US banks on the same day he attended a confidential meeting where top level officials disclosed the sector was heading for a deep crisis.

…Public records show that on the same day as the meeting, Ryan sold stock in troubled banks including Wachovia and Citigroup and bought shares in Goldman Sachs, Paulson’s old employer and a bank that had been disclosed to be stronger than many of its rivals. The sale was not illegal at the time.

Paul Ryan sold shares on same day as private briefing of banking crisis | US news | The Guardian

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Donald Trump’s Companies Destroyed Emails in Defiance of Court Orders

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

Over the course of decades, Donald Trump’s companies have systematically destroyed or hidden thousands of emails, digital records and paper documents demanded in official proceedings, often in defiance of court orders. These tactics—exposed by a Newsweek review of thousands of pages of court filings, judicial orders and affidavits from an array of court cases—have enraged judges, prosecutors, opposing lawyers and the many ordinary citizens entangled in litigation with Trump.

…This behavior is of particular import given Trump’s frequent condemnations of Hillary Clinton, his Democratic opponent, for having deleted more than 30,000 emails from a server she used during her time as secretary of state.

…This review of Trump’s many decades of abusing the judicial system, ignoring judges, disregarding rules, destroying documents and lying about it is not simply a sordid history lesson. Rather, it helps explain his behavior since he declared his candidacy. He promised to turn over his tax returns and his health records—just as he promised to comply with document discovery requirements in so many lawsuits—then reneged. As a result, he has left a sparse evidentiary trail that can be used to assess his wealth, his qualifications for the presidency or even his fitness.

…Finally, under subpoena, Trump appeared for a short deposition. When asked about the missing documents, he made a shocking admission: The Trumps had been destroying their corporate records for the previous six months and had no document-retention program. They had conducted no inspections to determine which files might have been sought in the discovery requests or might otherwise be related to the case. Instead, in order to “save space,” Trump testified, officials with his company had been tossing documents into the shredder and garbage.

…Two years after denying that Trump had insurance that could have been used to settle the Fort Lauderdale litigation, one of his lawyers made a startling admission: Trump and his company had been insured all along for up to $5 million. But no more—the policy had recently “dried up,” the lawyer said. Stunned, the apartment buyers filed a motion seeking sanctions against Trump and his company, arguing that the case “may very well have settled long ago had the plaintiffs been provided with the policy in a timely manner,” according to a court filing.

…A full year into the case, Trump and his company, Trump Hotels, had produced only a single box of documents, many of which were not relevant—and no emails, digital files, phone records, calendars or even documents Trump lawyers had promised to turn over. Interrogatories were still unanswered.

…n response, Trump Hotels filed an affidavit from one of its information technology managers stating that it had had no servers prior to 2001.That was false and by deposing numerous IT specialists with two Trump companies—the Trump Organization and Trump Hotels—lawyers for Power Plant gradually chipped away at it. Finally, during a deposition nine months after he had signed the deceptive affidavit, the same Trump executive admitted his assertions in it were untrue. In fact, an IBM Domino server for emails and other files had been installed in 1999, the same year witnesses for Power Plant contended that Trump had learned of the casino deal. Prior to that, as early as 1997, the Trump corporations used servers off-site operated by a company called Jersey Cape, according to sworn testimony by one of the Trump IT experts; the following year, the Trump Organization and Trump Hotels moved to another email provider, Technology 21.

These startling revelations changed nothing, however, because there was no trove of documents. The Trump records had been destroyed. Despite knowing back in 2001 that Trump might want to file a lawsuit, his companies had deleted emails and other records without checking if they might be evidence in his case. Beginning around 2003, the company wiped clear the data from everyone’s computers every year. Lawyers for Trump Hotels had never sent out the usual communication issued during litigation instructing employees to stop destroying records that might be related to this case. The deletions continued, and backup tapes were reused—thus erasing the data they held. Power Plant lawyers also discovered that after the lawsuit was filed, Trump Hotels disposed of a key witness’s computer without preserving the data on it.

Donald Trump’s Companies Destroyed Emails in Defiance of Court Orders

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Three of Mueller’s witnesses say Jeff Sessions lied to Congress

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

In November, Sessions testified that he “pushed back” against former Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos’ proposal for the campaign to work with the Russians. But in the same breath, he also denied even remembering that the meeting with Papadopoulos took place.

And in a new report from Reuters, three witnesses who have spoken to either Mueller’s team or congressional investigators challenged Sessions’ claims.

Three of Mueller’s witnesses say Jeff Sessions lied to Congress

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Kimmel’s shopping spree at Trump’s store turns up potential violations and zero American-made goods

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

Kimmel revealed he’d gone on a shopping spree at the Trump Organization’s online store. …Kimmel pulled one piece of merchandise after the other from the box and read each label and surprise! Not one single item was made in the U.SA. More than that, he found two items were missing the federally required country of origin designation.

 

Kimmel’s shopping spree at Trump’s store turns up potential violations and zero American-made goods

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Sessions Says to Courts: Go Ahead, Jail People Because They’re Poor

On By peanutgallerynhIn American Injustice System,, Domestic Affairs,, Money, Class, and Poverty,, Race,Leave a comment

Last week, Attorney General Jeff Sessions retracted an Obama-era guidance to state courts that was meant to end debtors’ prisons, where people who are too poor to pay fines are sent. This practice is blatantly unconstitutional, and the guidance had helped jump-start reform around the country. Its withdrawal is the latest sign that the federal government is retreating from protecting civil rights for the most vulnerable among us.

The Justice Department helped shine a light on the harms of fine and fees when it investigated Ferguson, Mo., three years ago after the killing of the teenager Michael Brown by a police officer.

…Ferguson used its criminal justice system as a for-profit enterprise, extracting millions from its poorest citizens. Internal emails revealed the head of finance directing policing strategy to maximize revenue rather than ensure public safety. Officers told us they were pressured to issue as many tickets as possible.

Even the local judge was in on it, imposing penalties of $302 for jaywalking and $531 for allowing weeds to grow in one’s yard. He issued arrest warrants for residents who fell behind on payments — including a 67-year-old woman who had been fined for a trash-removal violation — without inquiring whether they even had the ability to pay the exorbitant amounts. The arrests resulted in new charges, more fees and the suspension of driver’s licenses. These burdens fell disproportionately on African-Americans.

At the time of our investigation, over 16,000 people had outstanding arrest warrants from Ferguson, a city of 21,000. Untold numbers found themselves perpetually in debt to the city and periodically confined to its jail.

These problems were not unique to Ferguson.

…Sessions pulled 25 guidance documents last week. Sixteen of those involved civil rights protections — including 10 related to the Americans With Disabilities Act and one on the special harms that unlawful fine and fee practices can have for young people. Withdrawing these documents is consistent with the Trump administration’s hostility to civil rights in a host of other areas: abandoning oversight of police departments, reinterpreting anti-discrimination statutes to deny protection to L.G.B.T. individuals and switching sides in key voting rights cases.

Opinion | Sessions Says to Courts: Go Ahead, Jail People Because They’re Poor – The New York Times

Aghhhhhhhhhhhhhh

A Winning Political Issue Hiding in Plain Sight

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

…Yet none of these tested as well as a 15-second ad that never mentioned Moore.

“My kids are going to do more than just survive the bigotry and hatred,” a female narrator says, as the video shows a Klan march and then a student at a desk. “They’re going to get an education, start a business, earn a good living, make me proud. Education is my priority. That’s why I’m voting for Doug Jones.”

…Whatever complaints people may have about their local school or college costs, most have no doubt that their children need a good education. People see it as the most reliable path to a good life, and they are right.

The unemployment rate for college graduates is a mere 2.3 percent. College graduates earn vastly more than non-graduates. Educational gaps in life expectancy and health status are growing too.

…The rise in negative feelings toward colleges came largely among Republicans, many of whom see campuses as bastions of liberalism. Yet those Republicans still want their children to attend college. They understand that the benefits of education outweigh any risks of lefty brainwashing.

…Conor Lamb, the Pennsylvania Democrat, just won in a heavily Republican district by focusing relentlessly on his constituents, not Trump. Education was one of his themes. He told voters he was bothered that his brother and sister — both teachers — didn’t receive the gratitude that he did for being a Marine.

A Winning Political Issue Hiding in Plain Sight – The New York Times

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Nancy Pelosi doesn’t care if you hate her

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Today we have two parties that are as far apart ideologically, and as internally unified, as they’ve been in any of our lifetimes. For many years the Republicans were moving to the right far faster than the Democrats were moving to the left, but recently Democrats have begun to catch up; by 2020 every Democratic presidential candidate will probably support single-payer health care, a $15 minimum wage, and even marijuana legalization.

When you have those ideological divisions, each party’s leadership will inevitably reflect where the party is; you aren’t going to get a presidential nominee or a congressional leader who comes from the Democratic Party’s right flank or the Republican Party’s left flank.

…Charging your opponent with being too close to his or her party’s leaders is a good way to rile up your own base.

…Last year when she was asked about Republican attacks on her, Pelosi responded, “I think I’m worth the trouble, quite frankly.” There was a time when few Democrats would have questioned that assertion. People who understand how Congress works will tell you that Pelosi has been one of the most effective legislative leaders in American history, keeping her caucus together and shepherding legislation with a toughness and skill Paul Ryan can only dream about.

Nancy Pelosi doesn’t care if you hate her

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