Donald Trump, the road that might not lead to the White House!

[existentialist]

Russians appear to be pointing the finger squarely in the direction of the Brits for this entire imbroglio .

Christopher Steele in hiding over Trump dirty dossier made £1m in two years | Daily Mail Online

This could possibly escalate to a brouhaha between Britain and the US should Trump take the hump .

I expect you'd quite like that.

 

[Casually Red]

I expect you'd quite like that.

You might very well think that . I couldn't possibly comment .

Theresa Mays new Brexit ambassador having to deny he's the one who passed the dodgiest of dossiers on isn't a good look though . Especially as it now looks
from a number of reports like Trumps press conference performance has rallied his supporters and confirmed their belief that the establishment is out to get the Donald . It may have strengthened rather than weakened him .The baddies in the US public mind may well turn out to have clipped Oxbridge accents rather than thick Slavic ones if this thing has backfired .
I'm quite sure that scenario will be the one the Kremlin would like to see played out .

Eta

The likes of Rifkind and co may well be right in their worries that this could be damaging for Britain in the long run .

 

[CrabbedOne]

On The John Batchelor Show New Cold War Deploys US Combat Troops to the Poland-Russia Frontier. Michael Vlahos.

...
The deployment, intended to counter what Nato portrays as Russian aggression in eastern Europe, will see US troops permanently stationed along Russia’s western border for the first time.

About 1,000 of a promised 4,000 troops arrived in Poland at the start of the week, and a formal ceremony to welcome them is to be held on Saturday. Some people waved and held up American flags as the troops, tanks and heavy armoured vehicles crossed into south-western Poland from Germany, according to Associated Press.

But their arrival was not universally applauded. In Moscow, Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “We perceive it as a threat. These actions threaten our interests, our security. Especially as it concerns a third party building up its military presence near our borders. It’s [the US], not even a European state.”
...

A podcast, Batcherlor's show is a valuable window into how GOP supporters see things.

Vlahos from the Naval War College is a regular guest and worth listening to. Does not think we've handled Russia well since the Cold War. He see's this move of US troops from the Russian point of view as very aggressive and the outgoing administration as working to wreck any possible chance of detente with Russia purely out of sour grapes. A little unfair as the US policy community correctly tends to see Russia as dangerous adversary even if that's partly of their own engineering through neglect and Trump does seem overly concerned to pander to Putin.

On the other hand Vlahos sees a need to muscle the rising Chinese around more than Obama has been willing too. He may be underestimating how dangerous that is. Rather in the way a lot US policy wonks have dismissed Russia as just "a 3rd world Petro-State with ICBMs". A new Cold War with a China that the US is rather interlocked with commercially isn't a great idea either.

 

[CrabbedOne]

On War Is Boring Will Trump Shred the Iran Nuclear Deal?

Probably, though neither Israel nor the KSA security establishments after tactically sulking about it seem that keen on killing it.

The real question is Trump willing to go to war with Iran to retard a reviving nuke program that Iranian hawks may then pursue? Looking at the FP team he's assembled I'd say yes; Mattis has expressed doubts but they're very much "Bring it on!" kinda guys.

The only thing that might queer that is his Russian chums whose Syria policy collapses without Iran even if they really don't want Iran with nukes either. Probably dumb luck rather than a nice little Knight move by the Persians there.

 

[8den]

It seems the dodgy dossier was given the nod by No 10 , among others .

Britain dragged into Donald Trump 'dirty dossier' row amid claims Whitehall knew of the file

Unlikely to endear the post Brexit uk administration to the big orange cheese running a major trading partner .

Eta

Also confirms the "educated" guess I made a few days back about Steele being Litivenkos handler . In other words the guy who told him to go ahead and have dinner with his assassins .

I'm putting educated in inverted commas there. Because it's utterly speciously fact free speculative bollocks.

 

[Casually Red]

I'm putting educated in inverted commas there. Because it's utterly speciously fact free speculative bollocks.

Not according to that article . Or the numerous other ones that referred to his working relationship with litivenko while directly employed by the state . Guessing that working relationship meant he was his handler wasn't exactly a wild stab in the dark .

 

[not-bono-ever]

boom.

 

[taffboy gwyrdd]

Have we had this?

 

[Pickman's model]

Have we had this?

yes

still funny mind, so a third - and even a potential fourth - appearance won't hurt

 

[Casually Red]

he was his case officer for a while- as were a few, as Lit doidnt come to the Uk 'til late 2000 and popped his clogs a handful of years later, but it will never emerge who was running his book at the time obviously. whoever was running the book would not have beeen massively senior, as Litvinenko was a minor public figure in the UK with minimal benefit to the UK in terms of info he could prove that was not already known- any post asylum SIS relationship was very much lighter than a true ship jumper would expect and a subsequent lower ranker assigned to him

Not when the ship jumper was taking an active ..indeed central..role in directing black propaganda against the kremlin . Most of them just sell their secrets and go into hiding . Litvinenko was churning out lurid smears by the bucketload .

Eta

It's also been widely reported..as a device to stand over steeles supposed credibility..that Steele was the person who alerted Mi6 that Litvinenko had been poisoned . If that's accurate then it points very strongly to Steele having been his handler at the time of his poisoning . Otherwise whoever else the handler was would have been the one doing the alerting, as opposed to Steele .

 

[Pickman's model]

widely reported in all the top papers

 

[not-bono-ever]

..

 

[8den]

It's also been widely reported..as a device to stand over steeles supposed credibility..that Steele was the person who alerted Mi6 that Litvinenko had been poisoned . If that's accurate then it points very strongly to Steele having been his handler at the time of his poisoning . Otherwise whoever else the handler was would have been the one doing the alerting, as opposed to Steele .

I'm thinking the NHS may have helped too.

What has been reported is that after Litvinenko was poisoned, Steele was the one assigned to the case, (which would suggest he was not Litvinenko's "handler") and he is the one who confirmed than Putin ordered the murder.

It's genuinely breaktaking the contortions CR mikey mikey et all are putting themselves through to assuage themselves of Putin's innocence.

 

[not-bono-ever]

rycvtvu

 

[Casually Red]

View attachment 98840
widely reported in all the top papers

The first place I read it was in the link to the Guardian posted on this thread a few days ago . In their article that was sheepishly bigging up Steeles ...and by extension his dossiers..credibility .

 

[not a trot]

Trumps inauguration to be celebrated with a bring a bottle of piss party.

 

[mojo pixy]

He's got a golden toilet; perhaps he really does have a golden shower too.

 

[Casually Red]

I think there could very well be widespread mayhem but at the same time from the perspective of Trumps voting base that's only going to further the view that the US left are in league with "the crooked establishment" . And that their votes..and by extension they themselves...simply dont count for anything in certain quarters .

The fact is Trump has very deftly turned most of the attacks on him thus far back in the faces of those who initiated them . By many accounts this latest attempt to delegitimise him by the media and various intelligence agencies seems to be in the process of backfiring and merely shoring up what hes been saying all along . Yet again hes the outsider under attack from the powers that be and he just thrives on it . I doubt this tactic will have any more success than all the previous failures . He seems to ...has been proven to...literally thrive on this stuff. And people continually seem to forget that at every turn .

 

[Raheem]

From what I've heard, his apartment is split sort of into wings associated with different activities. Business, family, media and so on. Apparently he has a very big lounge, but his bedroom is on the wee side.

 

[hot air baboon]

...say what you like about Putin at least he wasn't interviewed on tv having a good laugh over Mr Litvinenko's agonising death...

 

[Casually Red]

He's got a golden toilet; perhaps he really does have a golden shower too.

He does . Some bloke was on YouTube talking about the golden shower he gave to trump and how much he liked it .

 

[hot air baboon]

...I see Bikers For Trump are going to be on hand at the inauguration and apparently ready for any trouble...wonder if Vlad will be sending a detachment of the Night Wolves over as a gesture of solidarity - a roar-past as the Donald takes the salute Brezhnev-style

 

[Casually Red]

...I see Bikers For Trump are going to be on hand at the inauguration and apparently ready for any trouble...wonder if Vlad will be sending a detachment of the Night Wolves over as a gesture of solidarity - a roar-past as the Donald takes the salute Brezhnev-style

A frightening thought . There'd be spontaneous golden showers from Hollywood to the pentagon if that happened .​

 

[coley]

View attachment 98840
widely reported in all the top papers

Mmm, having the whatever 'intelligence service' emerges from the buffoons appointments and the FSB on your case doesn't make for a good nights sleep.

 

[Johnny Canuck3]

Trump loves Brexit:

“People, countries want their own identity and the UK wanted its own identity,” he said. “Brexit is going to end up being a great thing.”

Trump's first UK post-election interview: Brexit a 'great thing'

 

[Casually Red]

Mmm, having the whatever 'intelligence service' emerges from the buffoons appointments and the FSB on your case doesn't make for a good nights sleep.

I doubt there'd be any real danger of a physical response from the kremlin , at least if he never strayed onto Russian territory .

Apart from that though his company is now pretty much toxic for anyone planning to do business of any kind in Russia . He'll be avoided like the plague by any potential client ...apart from maybe the Ukrainians . Anyone remotely linked to Orbis from hereonin will definitely be persona non grata . and I'm quite sure whatever sources he's claimed to have cultivated in Russia will be giving them a wide berth too . Definitely wouldnt be good for the health for a Russian to ever be linked to him . Certainly wasn't for Litvinenko .

And in the last few days there seems to be a number of British sources gently briefing against him to the media . If it turns out his dodgy dossier becomes harmful to British interests..and with a vengeful Trump that's a real possibility...then he may well start to feel the cold wind of perfidious Albion blowing in his direction . No freinds, only interests . Those negative briefings may well become a fair bit stronger and his reputation will end up destroyed . As a master of the smear himself he knows how that game works .

And then there's Trumps lawyer who on the face of it appears to have a pretty good case for a lawsuit in the US courts after what he claimed occoured in Prague .That could be very costly indeed should it transpire .

I've a feeling Celebrity Big Brother may beckon for this chap in the future if he wants to pay any bills . There's a distinct chance hell become a liability in the not too distant future .

 

[coley]

I doubt there'd be any real danger of a physical response from the kremlin , at least if he never strayed onto Russian territory .

Apart from that though his company is now pretty much toxic for anyone planning to do business of any kind in Russia . He'll be avoided like the plague by any potential client ...apart from maybe the Ukrainians . Anyone remotely linked to Orbis from hereonin will definitely be persona non grata . and I'm quite sure whatever sources he's claimed to have cultivated in Russia will be giving them a wide berth too . Definitely wouldnt be good for the health for a Russian to ever be linked to him . Certainly wasn't for Litvinenko .. Definitely wouldnt be good for the health for a Russian to ever be linked to him . Certainly wasn't for Litvinenko .

And in the last few days there seems to be a number of British sources gently briefing against him to the media . If it turns out his dodgy dossier becomes harmful to British interests..and with a vengeful Trump that's a real possibility...then he may well start to feel the cold wind of perfidious Albion blowing in his direction . No freinds, only interests . Those negative briefings may well become a fair bit stronger and his reputation will end up destroyed . As a master of the smear himself he knows how that game works .

And then there's Trumps lawyer who on the face of it appears to have a pretty good case for a lawsuit in the US courts after what he claimed occoured in Prague .That could be very costly indeed should it transpire .

I've a feeling Celebrity Big Brother may beckon for this chap in the future if he wants to pay any bills . There's a distinct chance hell become a liability in the not too distant future .

"Definitely wouldnt be good for the health for a Russian to ever be linked to him "Certainly wasn't for "Litvinenko"

Nice to see you admit to the FSB being prepared to murder those who upset your Hero, mebbes over the next four years we will see a joint Russian/US 'intelligence service' dedicated to eradicating anyone critical of Putin/Assad/Trump and thon nutjob in Korea, amongst others.
Urbanites being fingered by your good self for 'rendition'
Buggerinhell, started this post as a bit of a joke, but as I read it, it's not actually.

 

[Casually Red]

"Definitely wouldnt be good for the health for a Russian to ever be linked to him "Certainly wasn't for "Litvinenko"

Nice to see you admit to the FSB being prepared to murder those who upset your Hero, mebbes over the next four years we will see a joint Russian/US 'intelligence service' dedicated to eradicating anyone critical of Putin/Assad/Trump and thon nutjob in Korea, amongst others.
Urbanites being fingered by your good self for 'rendition'
Buggerinhell, started this post as a bit of a joke, but as I read it, it's not actually.

Litvinenko was an actual traitor . A former spy who betrayed his country and his comrades and worked for a hostile foreign power . A similar fate would be likely to befall any spy from any country who turned like that . Ed Snowden Is in hiding and in fear for his life for much less .

I haven't compiled any lists on people the Russians might want to send to the gulag since I was 14 or 15 . So no fear there .

 

[littlebabyjesus]

Litvinenko was an actual traitor . A former spy who betrayed his country and his comrades and worked for a hostile foreign power . A similar fate would be likely to befall any spy from any country who turned like that . Ed Snowden Is in hiding and in fear for his life for much less . .

You do know what you're doing here? You're adopting the position of power, and the logic of that power from its position.

Do better.

 

[Casually Red]

You do know what you're doing here? You're adopting the position of power, and the logic of that power from its position.

Do better.

I'm adopting the position of the Oxford English dictionary , were Litvinenkos activities on behalf of ..and in the employ of..the British intelligence services clearly fall under the categories of spy, treason, treachery and traitor .