What stupid shit has Trump done today?

[Don Troooomp]

Nice to see this one is moving along, and they'll very probably find something seriously dodgy in there, likely to do with the NRA. It would be quite nice to see a bunch of that lot in cells.

Prosecutors examining tens of thousands of Trump inauguration documents - CNNPolitics

(CNN)Federal prosecutors in New York are scrutinizing tens of thousands of documents relating to Donald Trump's inauguration in a sign that the investigation into the committee's finances is advancing.

The President's Inaugural Committee handed over the cache of documents over the course of several weeks in response to a wide-ranging subpoena seeking documents, records, and communications concerning the inaugural's finances, vendors, and donors sent in February by the US attorney's office with the Southern District of New York. The last set of documents was produced within the last month, people familiar with the matter said.
The end of the document production indicates the investigation is moving into the next stage. Authorities are investigating whether any of the record $107 million in donations for the inaugural was misspent, used to improperly benefit certain individuals, or came from foreign donors in violation of campaign finance laws that prohibit foreign money in US elections, people familiar with the inquiry said.

 

[Ming]

Bazinger

Trump loses lawsuit challenging subpoena for financial records

Looks like his accounting firm’s shredders will be working overtime while they lose documents.

 

[Don Troooomp]

Looks like his accounting firm’s shredders will be working overtime while they lose documents.

Unlikely as they know just how much trouble they'd be in if they did it. Let's hope there's enough evidence to drop Trump, and preferably his bent family, right in it.
However, realistically, it's more likely to be just one more in a long list of scandals he'll tweet and ignore his way out of thanks to bent republicans supporting him.

 

[Ming]

Unlikely as they know just how much trouble they'd be in if they did it. Let's hope there's enough evidence to drop Trump, and preferably his bent family, right in it.
However, realistically, it's more likely to be just one more in a long list of scandals he'll tweet and ignore his way out of thanks to bent republicans supporting him.

Depressing but true.

 

[CRI]

Depressing but true.

And not to forget the courts filled with Trump loyalists . . .

 

[CRI]

Just another reminder . . .

No children had died in federal immigration custody for a decade—until the Trump administration

The teen who was found dead in a Customs and Border Protection cell has been identified as Carlos Gregorio Hernandez Vasquez. The boy—the fifth child to die after being taken into U.S. custody since December—came here alone, a Guatemalan official said, and had been hoping to reunite with family. He was just 16.

“Before last year,” The Border Network for Human Rights said in a statement, “it had been more than a decade since a child died in the custody of federal immigration agents.” But the Trump administration has now seen two children die within the span of a week after being taken into U.S. custody. The ongoing deaths of children in federal immigration custody is unprecedented, and it is a national emergency.

Five children have now died after being taken into federal immigration custody, and we haven’t, at the very least, even seen one resignation? Not only that, the administration is demanding more funding to detain more people?

 

[CRI]

Trump and the GOP leadership are definitely working hand in hand to establish a white supremacist Christian theocracy in what was the USA. Getting McConnell out of the Senate is just as important as ousting Trump from the White House.

Mitch McConnell threatens to block everything if Trump loses in 2020

"If I'm still the majority leader in the Senate [in 2020], think of me as the Grim Reaper," McConnell told voters in Owensboro, Kentucky, on Monday. "None of that stuff is going to pass."

That stuff McConnell is so eager to kill? Popular progressive ideas like the Green New Deal and Medicare for All, which would help to clean up the environment and provide even more access to affordable health care. Even if voters reject Trump and the Republican agenda in 2020, McConnell is determined to do what he wants rather than what the voters want.

"I guarantee you that if I'm the last man standing and I'm still the majority leader, it ain't happening," he said. "I can promise you."

McConnell’s rhetoric is a throwback to his obstruction during President Barack Obama’s tenure, when he refused to even hold hearings on the Supreme Court nomination of Merrick Garland.

Earlier this month, McConnell wrote an op-ed attacking Democrats for "mindless, undiscriminating obstruction for the sake of obstruction" because they have opposed some of Trump's more radical or simply unqualified nominees.

 

[Don Troooomp]

Just to remind us what a lying twat Trump is - just on the off chance you'd forgotten. When will the idiot republicans wake up and stop putting their cash before their country. That lot are just as traitorous as Trump.

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/anthonycormier/cohen-transcripts-trump-directed-lie-congress

Gathered in the Oval Office on May 2017, President Donald Trump and two of his lawyers, Michael Cohen and Jay Sekulow, huddled to shape Cohen’s impending testimony before Congress. The conversation centered on Trump Tower Moscow, a planned condominium and hotel that could have been the most profitable project in the history of the Trump Organization. While running for president, Trump spoke to Cohen about it 10 times, and Cohen pursued the deal well into the summer of 2016.

But that day in the Oval Office, according to Cohen’s recent account, Trump claimed that the opposite was true: “There’s no Russia,” Cohen says the president insisted. “There’s no collusion, there’s no business, there’s no deals.” Cohen believed that Trump was telling him to lie.

Trump delivered that instruction on several occasions, Cohen told congressional investigators, but he needn’t have bothered. “For me, he didn’t have to say it more than once,” Cohen said. “I got it the first time, you know, what we were all in agreement on.”

 

[spring-peeper]

New York Assembly Passes Bill Closing 'Double Jeopardy' Loophole As Rebuke To Trump

The New York Assembly passed a bill on Tuesday that closes the so-called "double jeopardy" loophole, permitting state authorities to prosecute someone who receives a pardon from the president. The vote was 90-52.

Top Democrats in the state framed the change as a way to stand up to President Trump by removing a shield that had protected defendants from being prosecuted twice for similar crimes, and could have benefited those receiving pardons.

"Right now the president's threatened use of the pardon power is very troubling. It would be done to undermine an investigation to help out friends and family members," state Sen. Todd Kaminsky, a former federal prosecutor and the bill's sponsor, told NPR.

The New York Senate passed its version of the bill earlier this month. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has promised to sign it.

The legal concept against double jeopardy says prosecutors cannot charge and convict someone for the same criminal act twice. But it kicks in only after a jury is convened or when a defendant enters a plea.

Under the change, if someone is granted a presidential pardon for a federal crime, New York authorities will be allowed to bring a case related to the same behavior.

 

[CRI]

I'm surprised we haven't heard more about this, or about the impact of increased political uncertainty and polarisation of societies on mental and physical health generally, including in the UK. I've heard anecdotally from therapists, doctors and support charities about the uptick in cases of depression, stress and anxiety since 2016, particularly among people who'd not had issues before. And, these do have an impact on physical health too, as well as on relationships, productivity, sleep, etc. Of course on the same timeline, there has been a reduction health care services / access to services, (e.g. in the US, rolling back of the ACA so people don't have insurance coverage, in the UK it's more cut backs to the NHS and funding for not-for-profit services.)

Study: the wave of hostility under Trump is going to make us sick

In a new literature review published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine, the authors looked at the growing body of research on big political events, like elections and 9/11. They found people with racist sentiments have been emboldened since the 2016 election, and that anxiety and stress are on the rise. They also found that premature births and deaths, and an increased risk for disease, were part of a package of worrisome health consequences that might arise after the 2016 election.

Part of what created the space for Trump, and what Trump capitalized on, is the sense [white people] were losing their country and what their country represented was Obama. When Obama was elected, there were also studies coming out showing minorities will soon be the majority. So Obama’s election provided the context that helped Trump emerge as a political player.

The best evidence we have is a survey of 2,000 K-12 teachers across the US. Half of these teachers were saying their students were emboldened to use slurs and say hostile things about minorities, immigrants, and Muslims [during the 2016 election]. Two-thirds of the teachers reported that some of their students were worried about and living in the fear of what might happen to them or their families after the election.

...a national study conducted by the American Psychological Association in 2017 that finds two-thirds of all Americans were stressed about the future of the US, with nontrivial numbers reporting the outcome of the election itself has been a significant source of stress in their lives. Among minorities, more than half were reporting increased stress. Among whites, 42 percent were reporting increased stress.

Researchers have gone back and used the US General Social Survey that measures the levels of racial prejudice every two years to see if areas which are higher in racial prejudice [have unique health outcomes]. They found people who live in areas that are characterized by higher levels of racial prejudice have higher rates of death. Other researchers have found the mortality rate from heart disease is higher in these [high-prejudice] areas.

 

[CRI]

Oh, this is rather sweet!

Merrick Garland, denied Supreme Court spot, on court set to consider Trump subpoena appeal

Garland serves as the chief judge on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Trump's lawyers are asking that court to review a federal judge's order allowing the House Oversight and Reform Committee's subpoena to move forward.

Garland's Supreme Court nomination by former President Obama in 2016 became a lightning rod for controversy when the Republican-controlled Senate, led by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), refused to hold a hearing on his nomination until after the 2016 presidential election.

When Trump won the presidency, he appointed Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court seat vacated by Associate Justice Antonin Scalia following Scalia's death.

 

[CRI]

Should probably start a thread on bananas backward laws in the US resulting from the Trump/GOP regime, but I'll stick this one here for now.

Texas is about to get a ‘Save Chick-fil-A’ law that legalizes anti-LGBTQ discrimination

“This bill is going to pass; let’s face it,” said Texas Representative Celia Israel (D), moments before voting began. “It’s been cloaked in religious freedom, but the genesis, the nexus of this bill, is in hatred.”

Using special rules to get the bill through quickly, the state senate held a hearing that wasn’t announced in advance in a room that local journalists said was “nearly empty.”

If signed by the governor into law, the bill would ban any state or local government entity from taking “adverse actions” against businesses or individuals that interfere with their “religious beliefs” or “moral convictions.”

Supporters of the bill cited the city of San Antonio as an example of why the bill is needed. Last month, the San Antonio City Council refused to give Chick-fil-A a contract to operate at its local airport because of its donations to anti-LGBTQ causes.

The state of Texas does not ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. Some cities, counties, universities, and school districts have anti-discrimination policies that include LGBTQ people, either for the people they employ, contractors, or for private businesses in their jurisdictions. The bill could force those government entities to create religious exemptions to their laws.

So, in Texas, it's already legal to refuse to hire, to fire or refuse to provide a service to someone who is LGBTQ. If this law passes, it means statutory bodies have to consider companies that discriminate (if they say they do it for religious reasons) when tendering for services. For example, you could end up with a community college canteen being run by a catering firm owned by a fundy Christian that refuses to employ staff or even serve customers who are LGBTQ.

Red state legislatures are pushing for laws that give "religious freedom" precedence over any other form of discrimination. Once upon a time, most of these would have been struck down by higher courts, but with so many Trump loyalists being shoved into courts at all levels, that's seeming less likely for the future. All part of the plan.

 

[CRI]

Should probably start a thread on bananas backward laws in the US resulting from the Trump/GOP regime, but I'll stick this one here for now.

Texas is about to get a ‘Save Chick-fil-A’ law that legalizes anti-LGBTQ discrimination



So, in Texas, it's already legal to refuse to hire, to fire or refuse to provide a service to someone who is LGBTQ. If this law passes, it means statutory bodies have to consider companies that discriminate (if they say they do it for religious reasons) when tendering for services. For example, you could end up with a community college canteen being run by a catering firm owned by a fundy Christian that refuses to employ staff or even serve customers who are LGBTQ.

Red state legislatures are pushing for laws that give "religious freedom" precedence over any other form of discrimination. Once upon a time, most of these would have been struck down by higher courts, but with so many Trump loyalists being shoved into courts at all levels, that's seeming less likely for the future. All part of the plan.

And here's another example of Trump undermining more of the already meager protections for LGBTQ folks - in this case, denying trans people access to homeless shelters.



This hasn't happened because women residents, fundy christians or other anti-trans campaigners pushed for it. Like the ban on trans people in the military, it's purely down to bigotry, cruelty and sending the message that Trump and the GOP believe they can and will do what they fucking well please and no one can do anything about it.

 

[Tankus]

Judge Ramos won't issue an injunction against the Trump bank subpoenas and says the president is "unlikely to succeed on the merits,"

gotta luv the Hispanic name.
Judge says Deutsche Bank, Capital One can give Trump financial records to House Democrats

 

[Don Troooomp]

gotta luv the Hispanic name.

I'll bet there's a whole gang of judges just hoping Trump stuff comes to their courts so they can fuck the bastard

 

[Don Troooomp]

Remember Trump twittering on about how unfair it was to raid his lawyer's office?
Seems the bent activity was well documented a long time before the raid - so not at all unfair

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/zoetillman/documents-mueller-knew-trump-cohen-checks-2017

WASHINGTON — Newly unsealed court records show special counsel Robert Mueller knew by the end of 2017 that President Donald Trump had been writing checks that year to his former lawyer Michael Cohen totaling more than $280,000 — months before FBI agents raided Cohen’s home and offices in April 2018.

A federal judge in Washington, DC, unsealed five search warrant applications on Wednesday that Mueller’s office filed in 2017 seeking access to email accounts tied to Cohen (see below). The documents shed light on just how much information Mueller had gathered on Cohen by the end of that year. The special counsel’s office didn’t pursue charges against Cohen related to his finances, however; they referred out that investigation to federal prosecutors in Manhattan.

 

[Don Troooomp]

Trump says he won't work with Democrats until the investigations stop - and he did it in usual Trump rant style, then said his spontaneous outburst was .. errr ..spontaneous

Then went out to the rose garden where prepared signs were waiting.

He says he doesn't do cover ups - Bollocks!

 

[chandlerp]

Well I, for one, am very happy his bollocks are covered

 

[CRI]

A 10-year-old migrant girl died last year in government care, officials acknowledge

That's six asylum-seeking children dead in US custody during the past 8 months. This girl was actually the first, but it was kept quiet. Wouldn't be surprised to hear there have been many more.

 

[8ball]

A 10-year-old migrant girl died last year in government care, officials acknowledge

That's six asylum-seeking children dead in US custody during the past 8 months. This girl was actually the first, but it was kept quiet. Wouldn't be surprised to hear there have been many more.

Fucking hell.

 

[petee]

Trump says he won't work with Democrats until the investigations stop - and he did it in usual Trump rant style, then said his spontaneous outburst was .. errr ..spontaneous

Then went out to the rose garden where prepared signs were waiting.

He says he doesn't do cover ups - Bollocks!

yeah this was naked lunacy.

 

[8ball]

A 10-year-old migrant girl died last year in government care, officials acknowledge

That's six asylum-seeking children dead in US custody during the past 8 months. This girl was actually the first, but it was kept quiet. Wouldn't be surprised to hear there have been many more.

I know this might be silly bright-side seeking behaviour, but is there a chance that these were sick kids that were brought to the US in hope of a cure? They mentioned trying surgery with this one..

 

[CRI]

I know this might be silly bright-side seeking behaviour, but is there a chance that these were sick kids that were brought to the US in hope of a cure? They mentioned trying surgery with this one..

 

[8ball]

Can’t argue with that.

Although the one mentioned did have congenital heart defects.

According to the report, anyway.

 

[CRI]

Christ.
GOP removes lawmaker's remarks from the record after dispute over border deaths

 

[Don Troooomp]

Christ.
GOP removes lawmaker's remarks from the record after dispute over border deaths

How can they strike this from the record without destroying the integrity of the minutes?
Of course, they can't, so they might as well just make the truth up to suit the GOP's cause - oh, they did.

 

[chandlerp]

Shame on those ten Democrats who didn't bother turning up

 

[CRI]

Shame on those ten Democrats who didn't bother turning up

There is rarely full attendance at committee sessions like this one. They often "tag team" because only one rep can question at a time and there's not a lot of point sitting twiddling their thumbs while they have other work to do. They had no idea that GOP members were going to pull a stunt like this, so I don't think it's fair to blame the Democratic reps who weren't there at the time.

 

[CRI]

Has this case come up yet? No sympathy at all for the stupid father, but the poor kid.

He voted for Trump. Now he and his wife raise their son from opposite sides of the border

 

[Don Troooomp]

Voting Trump was always going to be a problem, but I don't think many ordinary people knew quite how big a problem and how much he was going to impact on personal lives.
People, in general, are stupid, that's how Trump got so many votes.