Republicans

[Joe]

And Trump continues to go easy on Russia.

White House to Congress: Russia sanctions not needed now

The Trump administration informed lawmakers Monday that new Russia sanctions called for in a bipartisan bill passed last year are not necessary yet because the measure is already "serving as a deterrent."

The announcement came as lawmakers in both parties nudged the administration to implement a sanctions legislation that passed overwhelmingly in July — with only five no votes in both the House and Senate. The sanctions bill requires the imposition of penalties by Monday against entities doing "significant" business with Moscow's defense and intelligence sectors, unless Congress is notified that prospective targets are "substantially reducing" that business.

In the meantime, Trump's own people admit the Russians haven't stopped trying to influence elections.

The director of the CIA expects that Russia will target the US mid-term elections later this year.

Mike Pompeo told the BBC there had been no significant diminishing of Russian attempts at subversion in Europe and the US.

...

Even though there has been co-operation in counter-terrorism (the CIA helped stop a plot in St Petersburg last year), Mr Pompeo says he still sees Russia primarily as an adversary, sharing the concerns in many European countries about its subversion. "I haven't seen a significant decrease in their activity," he said.

Asked if his concerns extended to the upcoming US mid-term elections in November, he replied: "Of course. I have every expectation that they will continue to try and do that, but I'm confident that America will be able to have a free and fair election [and] that we will push back in a way that is sufficiently robust that the impact they have on our election won't be great."

[Forty Two]

Of course they haven't stopped. They've been doing things try to "subvert" US elections for 50-75 years. They used to fund the Communist Party USA to try to influence elections, and for 50 years they've engaged in propaganda and disinformation. That's the main things they do every year, and of course, they engage in espionage, and have for many decades.

Just like Pompeo is quoted as saying in the article -- "We are going to go out there and do our damnedest to steal secrets on behalf of the American people. And I wanted to get back on our front foot." - lol. So, the US CIA is going to go out there and steal some secrets! But, of course, in doing so they will be sure not to interfere with the theft victims' electoral processes while they're at it.

Back in the McCarthy era, Russia, then part of the Soviet Union, was always the bogeyman for allegations of subversion. The Soviet Union was behind the movement in the US to meddle in our elections and government. They were getting people into the State Department and other agencies to infiltrate our government, too. That was the whole idea behind McCarthy's HUAC.

[Tyrannical]

A couple hundred thousand in Russian fake facebook adds is all it takes to win an election? Some people are in such serious denial that they believe that

[Forty Two]

There's a matter, too, of defining terms. Yes, facebook ads can, I guess, be considered "meddling" or "interfering" in an election. But, there is nothing that officially can be done about Russians posting facebook ads, even if they do so to favor a candidate or against other. What are we going to do? Criminalize putting out ads on facebook about politics? Or, only for some people? Facebook is a worldwide platform that anyone is allowed to join. Somehow the American government is going to say that non-Americans can't post political memes on Facebook? What's going to be done about it, actually?

The only thing that can be done is the US intelligence agencies can go out there and do what they do -- shut stuff down, and maybe kill people here and there who are doing stuff. But, do you really want the CIA determining who gets to post political opinions and memes on the internet? That's what the Russians are said to have done. Posted mostly wacky memes about politics to help trend or foster certain political opinons.

I've been hearing about this on this board for some time, and the political wing that is griping on and on about this Russian meddling and how serious the Facebook stuff is are the last people I would think would advocate that either (a) some law be passed to stop Russians from posting Facebook political ads, or (b) American forces, intelligence or otherwise, be dispatched to take care of the people posting such things. Is there something else that can be done? I might be able to think of a third .... strongarm Facebook to police its political ads.... but do we want that? Facebook, where 10s of millions of American voters spend a lot of their social media time, is now going to be subject to a politically based speech/expression censorship?

Well, if that;s what people want.... I guess that's what it will be.

[Forty Two]

Point being, i think everyone is against Russian interference when they do things like "hacking" into computer systems or trying to stuff ballot boxes and such. But, what MOST of the alleged "meddling" is, if we read the intelligence reports, it's stuff that's actually not illegal. It's just like propaganda and disinformation.

[JimC]

Point being, i think everyone is against Russian interference when they do things like "hacking" into computer systems or trying to stuff ballot boxes and such. But, what MOST of the alleged "meddling" is, if we read the intelligence reports, it's stuff that's actually not illegal. It's just like propaganda and disinformation.

Whatever the technical legal position, it's still an attempt by a foreign power to manipulate your democratic processes to enhance their own national interests, an attempt that was warmly welcomed and encouraged by people within the Trump campaign. If that is something that you can blithely ignore, it's a bit of a worry...

[Joe]

Of course they haven't stopped. They've been doing things try to "subvert" US elections for 50-75 years. They used to fund the Communist Party USA to try to influence elections, and for 50 years they've engaged in propaganda and disinformation. That's the main things they do every year, and of course, they engage in espionage, and have for many decades.

Just like Pompeo is quoted as saying in the article -- "We are going to go out there and do our damnedest to steal secrets on behalf of the American people. And I wanted to get back on our front foot." - lol. So, the US CIA is going to go out there and steal some secrets! But, of course, in doing so they will be sure not to interfere with the theft victims' electoral processes while they're at it.

Back in the McCarthy era, Russia, then part of the Soviet Union, was always the bogeyman for allegations of subversion. The Soviet Union was behind the movement in the US to meddle in our elections and government. They were getting people into the State Department and other agencies to infiltrate our government, too. That was the whole idea behind McCarthy's HUAC.

Yes, and we have responded with counterespionage and sanctions in the past, but today we didn't. The Executive declined to do so in the face of a bill passed by Congress by veto proof margins, which is the part your recap of the McCarthy era misses.

I wonder what Whittaker Chambers would make of the assault on the FBI and the Special Prosecutor. Alger Hiss was five feet from the President at Yalta. Given the resistance to a legitimate investigation of whether Russian efforts met with abnormal success, how close do you think they are today?

[Tero]

The penny pinchers at work. We can't pay for stuff now! We cut taxes! Get with the program.

Democrats on the Joint Economic Committee have unveiled a new report that bills the administration’s proposal as a “bait and switch,” slamming the public-private partnerships the White House is slated to expand in the plan.

“We can all agree that our infrastructure needs a major investment and upgrade, but indications of the president’s plan simply won’t cut it,” Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), the ranking member of the committee, said in a statement.

The Hill

[Tyrannical]

https://pjmedia.com/trending/report-fbi ... -election/

This could really be Irony for Dept FBI Director Mcabe.

Ironically, the FBI's announcement that it was reopening the Clinton investigation a few days before the election — which many Clinton supporters say cost her the election — may have come nearly three weeks later than it should have. McCabe may have intended to hold off until after the election, but ended up being unable to do so.

This news proves particularly damning, as McCabe's wife — who was running for a seat in the Virginia state house — had received hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from one of Clinton's close allies, then-Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D). Worse, McCabe seems to have changed his mind and acted on the Clinton emails — shortly after The Wall Street Journal reported on these contributions.

[Brian Peacock]

Republicans redefine morality as whatever Trump does

A Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday found that two-thirds of Americans say Trump is not a good role model for children. Every component of society feels that way — men and women, old and young, black and white, highly educated or not — except for one: Republicans. By 72 to 22 percent, they say Trump is a good role model.

In marked contrast to the rest of the country, Republicans also say that Trump shares their values (82 percent) and that — get this — he “provides the United States with moral leadership” (80 percent).

Even Republican evangelical leaders are on board.

The triumph of partisanship over morality starts at the top. Franklin Graham excused Trump’s alleged sexual encounter, and Tony Perkins, the president of the conservative Family Research Council, declared that Trump gets a “mulligan” — a do-over — for his behavior.

Obviously, the only answer to this hypocrisy is ridicule.

MSNBC commentator Rick Wilson couldn’t help but make fun of the evangelical community for giving President Donald Trump a pass on his alleged extramarital affairs and moral quandaries.

During “Real Time Overtime,” Wilson told host Bill Maher that he was quoting “The Book of Poontang” to back up his claims.

“And it says, thou shalt allow The Donald to f*ck porn stars and let him get away with it,” Wilson joked.

He explained that the decision to give Trump a so-called “mulligan” on morality is nothing more than a Mt. Everest-size mountain of bullsh*t” and that the evangelicals are “on the peek of that mountain.”

It's "peak".

Raw Story is one of the sites I avoid for the same reason I don't consult the likes of The Daily Caller for information.

Understood. I evaluate stories on their own merit, regardless of where they are hosted, but I do scrutinize Raw Story, Daily Caller, and their like more closely.

Still, it goes to show how loosely moral standards are often applied to those nominal authorities charged with embodying them. It's one law for them, and one for the test of us...

[Joe]

Republicans redefine morality as whatever Trump does

A Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday found that two-thirds of Americans say Trump is not a good role model for children. Every component of society feels that way — men and women, old and young, black and white, highly educated or not — except for one: Republicans. By 72 to 22 percent, they say Trump is a good role model.

In marked contrast to the rest of the country, Republicans also say that Trump shares their values (82 percent) and that — get this — he “provides the United States with moral leadership” (80 percent).

Even Republican evangelical leaders are on board.

The triumph of partisanship over morality starts at the top. Franklin Graham excused Trump’s alleged sexual encounter, and Tony Perkins, the president of the conservative Family Research Council, declared that Trump gets a “mulligan” — a do-over — for his behavior.

Obviously, the only answer to this hypocrisy is ridicule.

MSNBC commentator Rick Wilson couldn’t help but make fun of the evangelical community for giving President Donald Trump a pass on his alleged extramarital affairs and moral quandaries.

During “Real Time Overtime,” Wilson told host Bill Maher that he was quoting “The Book of Poontang” to back up his claims.

“And it says, thou shalt allow The Donald to f*ck porn stars and let him get away with it,” Wilson joked.

He explained that the decision to give Trump a so-called “mulligan” on morality is nothing more than a Mt. Everest-size mountain of bullsh*t” and that the evangelicals are “on the peek of that mountain.”

It's "peak".

Raw Story is one of the sites I avoid for the same reason I don't consult the likes of The Daily Caller for information.

Understood. I evaluate stories on their own merit, regardless of where they are hosted, but I do scrutinize Raw Story, Daily Caller, and their like more closely.

Still, it goes to show how loosely moral standards are often applied to those nominal authorities charged with embodying them. It's one law for them, and one for the test of us...

I think many of us expect that in our leaders. We've seen it enough.

As the editorial pointed out, a majority of Democrats polled didn't see Bill Clinton as a moral exemplar, but approved of his job performance, and didn't think his transgressions warranted removal from office. It seems Republicans feel they have to support every aspect of Trump, and can't make that distinction.

That kind of blind allegiance strikes me as a dangerous trend.

[Scot Dutchy]

It is blind allegiance because they are confused and hold onto Trump as a bit of flotsam in a sea of fake news.

[Forty Two]

Of course they haven't stopped. They've been doing things try to "subvert" US elections for 50-75 years. They used to fund the Communist Party USA to try to influence elections, and for 50 years they've engaged in propaganda and disinformation. That's the main things they do every year, and of course, they engage in espionage, and have for many decades.

Just like Pompeo is quoted as saying in the article -- "We are going to go out there and do our damnedest to steal secrets on behalf of the American people. And I wanted to get back on our front foot." - lol. So, the US CIA is going to go out there and steal some secrets! But, of course, in doing so they will be sure not to interfere with the theft victims' electoral processes while they're at it.

Back in the McCarthy era, Russia, then part of the Soviet Union, was always the bogeyman for allegations of subversion. The Soviet Union was behind the movement in the US to meddle in our elections and government. They were getting people into the State Department and other agencies to infiltrate our government, too. That was the whole idea behind McCarthy's HUAC.

Yes, and we have responded with counterespionage and sanctions in the past, but today we didn't.

That's not accurate.
There are currently sanctions on Russia, which were not repealed. And, the CIA director just said, above, that the intelligence community is responding with counterespionage. Now, remember, the left used to be very much against espionage, which usually involves illegal activity. That's why spies are often at risk of being disavowed the government, becauase what they're doing is illegal.

Now, of course, the left is pretending to be the greatest patriots to the point of jingoistic support for "intelligence services" and the FBI. We have to believe them, because they are so honorable now, and everything they do is non-partisan and correct. No questions needed.

The Executive declined to do so in the face of a bill passed by Congress by veto proof margins, which is the part your recap of the McCarthy era misses.

Sure, because it was determined by the Executive - including his cabinet people - that MORE sanctions were not needed now. Did Russia do something new that warrants new sanctions. Remember in the early part of the Obama Administration, they not only were not sanctioning Russia - who we and all the intelligence agencies have known for decades have been trying to interfere with our elections - but they tried a reset of relations, so that we would be fast friends and allies. REmember too, that the position of the Obama administration was that the suggestion that Russia was a high level foreign policy threat was laughed at - literally laughed at - despite the Obama administration being briefed all the time about various intelligence issues, and they must have known that Russia was - for decades - and still - trying to interfere with our elections. The "intelligence memo from late 2016 which reported on Russia's "meddling" said exactly that - that Russia has been known to be meddling in our elections for many decades. It's a continuing course of conduct.

So, there are many reasons to not want to increase sanctions on a nuclear power who is busy poking ships near US waters, and flying warplanes aggressively near US borders and such. There are many reasons to do that, one of which might well be that we have to work with Russia in the middle east, e.g. Syria, ISIS, etc.


The goal is not to go to war with Russia. The goal is to resolve our differences, right?

I wonder what Whittaker Chambers would make of the assault on the FBI and the Special Prosecutor. Alger Hiss was five feet from the President at Yalta. Given the resistance to a legitimate investigation of whether Russian efforts met with abnormal success, how close do you think they are today?

Other than statements that the investigation is bullshit and there is no collusion, what "resistance" has the administration given?

The intelligence agencies were investigating for 8 months or more before Trump was even sworn in. And, they've not been hampered in their actions now. What do you think they've discovered?

[Tero]

If there is no collusion, there is no deep state either. Why force two FBI chiefs out?

[Forty Two]

If there is mo collusion, there is no deep state either. Why force two FBI chiefs out?

That doesn't make logical sense. If there is no collusion between Trump and Russia, there still can be a deep state, whatever that is.

Why force two FBI chiefs out? I don't know. Everybody wanted to fire Comey - the Democrats were furious with him, and thought he should be fired, right up until Trump fired him, and then they said he never should have been fired. That's because they're hypocritical assholes, like quite a lot of politicians on both sides of the aisle.

I don't think anyone forced out another FBI chief, Comey.

McCabe resigned amid bias allegations, and in advance of the (as many of you have said many times) unbiased, apolitical Inspector General is going to be issuing some findings on their investigation within the FBI. So, we'll see what the report says. But, according to the White House, it played no role in the decision to let him go. If that's not true, I'm sure some anonymous source will leak it.