crooksandliars--2020-09-05--Donald Trump Is Attacking Our Election With Same Talking Points As Russia

Donald Trump ’ s attacks on the U.S. elections are “ disturbingly identical ” to Russia ’ s , as CNN ’ s Brianna Keilar put it , and she showed us the video receipts to prove it .
Keilar read from two Department of Homeland Security memos that describe Russia ’ s tactics .
Then , she played clips of Trump sounding like he could have been carrying out Putin ’ s marching orders : DHS : Russia Likely to Continue Seeking to Undermine Faith in US Electoral Process .
TRUMP : The only way we 're going to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is rigged .
It ’ ll end up being a rigged election or they 'll never come out with an outcome .
I think it 's going to be the greatest fraud ever .
I think it 's going to be a rigged election .
DHS : We assess that Russia is likely to continue amplifying criticisms of vote-by-mail and shifting voting processes amidst the COVID-19 pandemic to undermine public trust in the electoral process .
TRUMP : This universal mail-in is a very dangerous thing .
It 's fraught with fraud and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mail-in voting is going to rig the election .
Trump and Russia fear monger that ineligible voters will receive mail-in ballots : DHS : Russian state media and proxy websites in mid-August 2020 criticized the integrity of expanded and universal vote-by-mail , claiming ineligible voters could receive ballots due to out-of-date voter rolls… TRUMP : You get thousands and thousands of people sitting in somebody ’ s living room , signing ballots all over the place .
In California , the governor sent , I hear , or is sending millions of ballots @ @ @ @ @ @ @ anybody .
To anybody .
People that are n't citizens , illegals , anybody that walks in California is going to get a ballot .
Trump and Russia accuse state officials of using the pandemic as an excuse for mail-in voting ( in order to rig outcomes ) : DHS : these Russian outlets also claimed that state election officials and policy makers leverage the COVID-19 pandemic to justify politically expedient decisions made on holding primary elections and implementing new voting processes and vote-by mail programs allegedly designed to benefit specific candidates and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ now , all of a sudden , New Jersey is gon na be hit with millions of ballots to be sent out .
They didn ’ t know anything about this .
And if you look at some of the things they say , like , in , take the state of Nevada , take that little scam that 's going on over there with the clubhouse politician governor .
I 'll tell you who 's meddling in our elections .
The Democrats are meddling by wanting and insisting on sending mail-in ballots @ @ @ @ @ @ @ accusing other countries of interfering in U.S. elections : DHS : We assess that Russian state media , proxies and Russian-controlled social media trolls are likely to promote allegations of corruption , system failure and foreign malign interference to sow distrust in democratic institutions and election outcomes .
TRUMP : Mail-in ballots , you 're going to have foreign countries .
You talk about foreign countries - they 're going to be printing their own ballots .
By the way , you guys like to talk about Russia and China and other places @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ballots .
They 'll forge ‘ em , they ’ ll do whatever they have to do .
Keilar paused to point out that senior U.S. intelligence officials tasked with protecting the 2020 election recently said there ’ s no evidence that foreign countries are interfering with the mail-in process .
DHS : We assess Russian malign influence actors are likely to continue denigrating presidential candidates through allegations of poor mental or physical health to influence the outcome of the 2020 elections .
TRUMP : The man ca n't speak and he 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ say he 's not competent to be president .
You have to be sharp and tough and so many other things .
He does n't even come out of his basement .
Guy does n't know he 's alive .
He 's going to be out in ten days .
Trump and Russia accuse Democrats of rigging the presidential primary process : DHS : In the Iowa caucuses in February , Russian state media and proxy websites claimed that the contest was fixed in favor of establishment candidates … These outlets continued this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Democratic Party made a corrupt back-room deal to orchestrate the exit of establishment candidates to consolidate the vote behind former Vice President Biden… TRUMP : I think Bernie is looking more and more like he 'll be the nominee .
Unless they cheat him out of it .
I think it ’ s rigged against Bernie but maybe he 'll pull it through .
It was rigged against me four years ago and I pulled it through .
I think it ’ s rigged against Bernie .
Mayor Pete , he quit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hear -- then I hear a senator from a state we 're going to win .
We 're going to win that state but she dropped out .
Sounds like they made a deal .
But wait , there ’ s more .
Keilar noted that two cabinet members have downplayed Russian interference in order to point fingers at China .
First , we saw Attorney General and Trump loyalist Bill Barr claiming he ’ s “ seen the intelligence ” showing that China is interfering with the election more than Russia .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ is doing .
Then we saw Secretary of State and Trump loyalist Mike Pompeo saying , “ The greatest threat to the United States of America from a foreign power emanates from the Chinese Communist Party .
It ’ s not , frankly , a close call.
” KEILAR : China , while a threat , is not actively interfering in the U.S. election .
That ’ s according to the intel community .
Russia , on the other hand , is an active , ongoing threat and intelligence shows that .
They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
And experts say those officials are delinquent and political in ignoring the threat that Russia poses .
Actually , it seems a whole lot worse than “ delinquent and political .
”

Donald Trump’s attacks on the U.S. elections are “disturbingly identical” to Russia’s, as CNN’s Brianna Keilar put it, and she showed us the video receipts to prove it.
Keilar read from two Department of Homeland Security memos that describe Russia’s tactics. Then, she played clips of Trump sounding like he could have been carrying out Putin’s marching orders:
Trump and Russia undermine electoral process:
DHS: Russia Likely to Continue Seeking to Undermine Faith in US Electoral Process. TRUMP: The only way we're going to lose this election is if the election is rigged. It’ll end up being a rigged election or they'll never come out with an outcome. I think it's going to be the greatest fraud ever. I think it's going to be a rigged election.
Trump and Russia attack vote-by-mail:
DHS: We assess that Russia is likely to continue amplifying criticisms of vote-by-mail and shifting voting processes amidst the COVID-19 pandemic to undermine public trust in the electoral process. TRUMP: This universal mail-in is a very dangerous thing. It's fraught with fraud and every other thing that can happen. Ballots are lost. There's fraud, there’s theft. Mail-in voting is going to rig the election.
Trump and Russia fear monger that ineligible voters will receive mail-in ballots:
DHS: Russian state media and proxy websites in mid-August 2020 criticized the integrity of expanded and universal vote-by-mail, claiming ineligible voters could receive ballots due to out-of-date voter rolls… TRUMP: You get thousands and thousands of people sitting in somebody’s living room, signing ballots all over the place. In California, the governor sent, I hear, or is sending millions of ballots all over the state, millions to anybody. To anybody. People that aren't citizens, illegals, anybody that walks in California is going to get a ballot.
Trump and Russia accuse state officials of using the pandemic as an excuse for mail-in voting (in order to rig outcomes):
DHS: these Russian outlets also claimed that state election officials and policy makers leverage the COVID-19 pandemic to justify politically expedient decisions made on holding primary elections and implementing new voting processes and vote-by mail programs allegedly designed to benefit specific candidates and influence election outcomes. TRUMP: So now, all of a sudden, New Jersey is gonna be hit with millions of ballots to be sent out. They didn’t know anything about this. And if you look at some of the things they say, like, in, take the state of Nevada, take that little scam that's going on over there with the clubhouse politician governor. I'll tell you who's meddling in our elections. The Democrats are meddling by wanting and insisting on sending mail-in ballots.
Trump and Russia sow distrust by accusing other countries of interfering in U.S. elections:
DHS: We assess that Russian state media, proxies and Russian-controlled social media trolls are likely to promote allegations of corruption, system failure and foreign malign interference to sow distrust in democratic institutions and election outcomes. TRUMP: Mail-in ballots, you're going to have foreign countries. You talk about foreign countries - they're going to be printing their own ballots. By the way, you guys like to talk about Russia and China and other places. They'll be able to forge ballots. They'll forge ‘em, they’ll do whatever they have to do.
Keilar paused to point out that senior U.S. intelligence officials tasked with protecting the 2020 election recently said there’s no evidence that foreign countries are interfering with the mail-in process.
Trump and Russia attack Joe Biden’s mental and physical competence:
DHS: We assess Russian malign influence actors are likely to continue denigrating presidential candidates through allegations of poor mental or physical health to influence the outcome of the 2020 elections. TRUMP: The man can't speak and he's going to be your president? I say he's not competent to be president. You have to be sharp and tough and so many other things. He doesn't even come out of his basement. Guy doesn't know he's alive. He's going to be out in ten days.
Trump and Russia accuse Democrats of rigging the presidential primary process:
DHS: In the Iowa caucuses in February, Russian state media and proxy websites claimed that the contest was fixed in favor of establishment candidates … These outlets continued this narrative into March 2020, claiming that the Democratic Party made a corrupt back-room deal to orchestrate the exit of establishment candidates to consolidate the vote behind former Vice President Biden… TRUMP: I think Bernie is looking more and more like he'll be the nominee. Unless they cheat him out of it. I think it’s rigged against Bernie but maybe he'll pull it through. It was rigged against me four years ago and I pulled it through. I think it’s rigged against Bernie. Mayor Pete, he quit out last night. And then I hear -- then I hear a senator from a state we're going to win. We're going to win that state but she dropped out. Sounds like they made a deal.
But wait, there’s more. Keilar noted that two cabinet members have downplayed Russian interference in order to point fingers at China. First, we saw Attorney General and Trump loyalist Bill Barr claiming he’s “seen the intelligence” showing that China is interfering with the election more than Russia. Yet Barr refused to say what China is doing. Then we saw Secretary of State and Trump loyalist Mike Pompeo saying, “The greatest threat to the United States of America from a foreign power emanates from the Chinese Communist Party. It’s not, frankly, a close call.”
Keilar called BS.
KEILAR: China, while a threat, is not actively interfering in the U.S. election. That’s according to the intel community. Russia, on the other hand, is an active, ongoing threat and intelligence shows that. They're interfering right now in the election. And experts say those officials are delinquent and political in ignoring the threat that Russia poses.
Actually, it seems a whole lot worse than “delinquent and political.”


crooksandliars--2020-09-05--Trump Bashes Gen. John Kelly After Reports Confirm Trump Called Troops 'Suckers' And 'Losers'

Trump trashed The Atlantic story about his twisted views that troops who have served in war throughout history are suckers and losers , and then turned his ire on General John Kelly .
His former Chief of Staff has refused to comment on the story at all .
On Friday , the political world blew up after The Atlantic 's blockbuster report highlighted Trump 's narcissistic view of the military , and his trashing of our fallen troops and wounded soldiers .
After multiple credible news organizations confirmed the story , ( even Fox News ! )
America now has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on what it means to sacrifice oneself for our country , and it 's a mind that is severely damaged .
During a press briefing on Friday , Trump was asked to respond to the story , and of course he denigrated the article and anyone associated with it .
A reporter asked why Gen. Kelly has refused to comment on the story , which involves Trump insulting the memory of Gen. Kelly 's own son .
Instead of empathizing with Gen.Kelly for the loss of his son in Afghanistan , Trump trashed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unhinged rant , classifying him as ultimately a weak loser — an man unworthy to serve Trump , who got eaten alive by Washington , DC .
Trump said , “ I know John Kelly .
He was with me , didn ’ t do a good job , had no temperament , and ultimately he was petered out , he was exhausted .
This man was totally exhausted .
He wasn ’ t even able to function in the last number of months .
He was not able to function .
He @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by the time he got eaten up in this world , it ’ s a different world than he was used to , he was unable to function . ''
`` And I told him , John , you ’ re going to have to go , please give me a letter of resignation , and we did that , '' he said .
Trump must feel that Gen. Kelly is one of the sources for Jeffrey Goldberg 's article , because after the story broke , Gen. Kelly has refused to comment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , he goes out and badmouths— now , there are people that are jealous .
There are people that are upset that they ’ re not here anymore… '' Trump went off on a tangent about his wonderful handling of the virus , which is a lie , of course .
Trump then came back to Gen. Kelly , saying , `` I don ’ t know that it was him .
I haven ’ t seen that .
I see anonymous , but it could have been a guy like a John @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he was a very — you look at some of his news conferences , what happened to him , he got eaten alive .
He was unable to handle the pressure of this job .
This job was a tough job.
” Trump then praised Mark Meadows , who is a shell of a man compared to Gen. Kelly , and said , `` John Kelly was unable to do that . ''

Trump trashed The Atlantic story about his twisted views that troops who have served in war throughout history are suckers and losers, and then turned his ire on General John Kelly. His former Chief of Staff has refused to comment on the story at all.
On Friday, the political world blew up after The Atlantic's blockbuster report highlighted Trump's narcissistic view of the military, and his trashing of our fallen troops and wounded soldiers.
After multiple credible news organizations confirmed the story, (even Fox News!) America now has the perfect window into Trump's mind on what it means to sacrifice oneself for our country, and it's a mind that is severely damaged.
During a press briefing on Friday, Trump was asked to respond to the story, and of course he denigrated the article and anyone associated with it. A reporter asked why Gen. Kelly has refused to comment on the story, which involves Trump insulting the memory of Gen. Kelly's own son.
Instead of empathizing with Gen.Kelly for the loss of his son in Afghanistan, Trump trashed his former Chief of Staff in an unhinged rant, classifying him as ultimately a weak loser — an man unworthy to serve Trump, who got eaten alive by Washington, DC.
Trump said, “I know John Kelly. He was with me, didn’t do a good job, had no temperament, and ultimately he was petered out, he was exhausted. This man was totally exhausted. He wasn’t even able to function in the last number of months. He was not able to function. He was sort of a tough guy, by the time he got eaten up in this world, it’s a different world than he was used to, he was unable to function."
"And I told him, John, you’re going to have to go, please give me a letter of resignation, and we did that," he said.
Trump must feel that Gen. Kelly is one of the sources for Jeffrey Goldberg's article, because after the story broke, Gen. Kelly has refused to comment. Trump continued, "And now, he goes out and badmouths— now, there are people that are jealous. There are people that are upset that they’re not here anymore…"
Trump went off on a tangent about his wonderful handling of the virus, which is a lie, of course.
Trump then came back to Gen. Kelly, saying, "I don’t know that it was him. I haven’t seen that. I see anonymous, but it could have been a guy like a John Kelly. Just so you understand, he was a very — you look at some of his news conferences, what happened to him, he got eaten alive. He was unable to handle the pressure of this job. This job was a tough job.”
Trump then praised Mark Meadows, who is a shell of a man compared to Gen. Kelly, and said, "John Kelly was unable to do that."
Wow, just wow.


crooksandliars--2020-09-05--Families Separated By Cruel Trump Policies Try To Heal From Trauma

Maria , a mother of two in Florida , told Monique O. Madan of the Miami Herald that ever since her family became one of the thousands ripped apart by the Trump administration under his zero tolerance policy on immigration , triple-checking that her home ’ s windows and doors are secured before going to sleep has been a regular and painful routine .
“ I always worry that my kids will be taken in the middle of the night , ” she said .
She ’ s now also among the families who have been accessing mental health services @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ruling last year ordering the administration to pay for such services due to the state-sanctioned trauma it inflicted on children and their parents .
In that ruling last year , Judge John Kronstadt “ referred to previous federal cases that found that governments can be held liable when with ‘ deliberate indifference ’ they place people in dangerous situations , ” The New York Times reported at the time .
The damage this policy inflicted on families has been documented by the federal government itself .
Last year , the Health and Human @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a report that the traumas asylum-seeking children in particular had already experienced in their home countries were exacerbated after they were kidnapped from their parents by U.S. immigration agents and placed into children ’ s facilities .
“ For example , some separated children expressed acute grief that caused them to cry inconsolably , ” the inspector general ’ s report said .
“ Children who did not understand why they were separated from their parents suffered elevated levels of mental distress .
For example , program directors and mental health clinicians @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had abandoned them were angry and confused.
” Maria , whose last name is not being used to protect her identify , recounted her trauma to Madan as if it had just happened yesterday .
“ She and her 5-year-old daughter were sleeping side by side in a U.S. Customs and Border Protection jail cell days after the two had journeyed from El Salvador and illegally crossed the Texas border , ” Madan writes .
It was 1 in the morning .
“ ’ They woke her up and just took her—snatched her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ incident when Customs agents took her daughter .
‘ I never saw her again until two months later.
’ ” She told Madan , “ You just can ’ t erase them , the memories.
” But mental health specialists certainly try to help them get to a place where they can live their lives in more ease .
Madan reports that specialists with Seneca Family of Agencies and Kristi House “ use ‘ culturally modified trauma-focused treatment , ’ a culturally adapted intervention based on trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy developed for use @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s Vanessa Ramirez told Madan that “ we basically make sure that we incorporate culture , that we bring in cultural aspects like values , rituals , religion into therapy in order to help strengthen the family relationships.
” But they said it ’ s nevertheless a challenge .
Some families complete their sessions using telehealth due to distance .
Seneca ’ s Johanna Navarro-Perez told Madan “ it ’ s not the same as being in person , but we ’ ve had to make it work .
Technology is also a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ don ’ t have access to a phone , tablet or Wi-Fi networks.
” But they said it ’ s also challenging because they haven ’ t been able to contact all families eligible for services under the court order .
According to the report , only about 350 families out of 2,500 have been reached .
“ Many of the families are unfindable ; they go off the grid and become ghosts , ” Navarro-Perez continued to Madan .
“ Some of their last known addresses were actually detention centers.
” And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for possibly being mistrusting of an incredibly personal service being paid for by the same government that ripped them apart in the first place .
A number of tallies have found that the Trump administration separated 5,500 children from their families since 2017 , more than 1,500 of those children before any official policy was implemented in early 2018 .
But while a federal judge ordered a stop to the policy in June of that year , U.S. immigration officials exploited a loophole in his ruling to separate even more children , sometimes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ accusing parents fleeing gang violence of being gang members themselves .

Maria, a mother of two in Florida, told Monique O. Madan of the Miami Herald that ever since her family became one of the thousands ripped apart by the Trump administration under his zero tolerance policy on immigration, triple-checking that her home’s windows and doors are secured before going to sleep has been a regular and painful routine. “I always worry that my kids will be taken in the middle of the night,” she said.
She’s now also among the families who have been accessing mental health services, following a “groundbreaking” court ruling last year ordering the administration to pay for such services due to the state-sanctioned trauma it inflicted on children and their parents. In that ruling last year, Judge John Kronstadt “referred to previous federal cases that found that governments can be held liable when with ‘deliberate indifference’ they place people in dangerous situations,” The New York Times reported at the time.
The damage this policy inflicted on families has been documented by the federal government itself. Last year, the Health and Human Services (HHS) inspector general said in a report that the traumas asylum-seeking children in particular had already experienced in their home countries were exacerbated after they were kidnapped from their parents by U.S. immigration agents and placed into children’s facilities.
“For example, some separated children expressed acute grief that caused them to cry inconsolably,” the inspector general’s report said. “Children who did not understand why they were separated from their parents suffered elevated levels of mental distress. For example, program directors and mental health clinicians reported that children who believed their parents had abandoned them were angry and confused.”
Maria, whose last name is not being used to protect her identify, recounted her trauma to Madan as if it had just happened yesterday.
“She and her 5-year-old daughter were sleeping side by side in a U.S. Customs and Border Protection jail cell days after the two had journeyed from El Salvador and illegally crossed the Texas border,” Madan writes. It was 1 in the morning. “’They woke her up and just took her—snatched her,’ Maria said of the 2018 incident when Customs agents took her daughter. ‘I never saw her again until two months later.’” She told Madan, “You just can’t erase them, the memories.”
But mental health specialists certainly try to help them get to a place where they can live their lives in more ease. Madan reports that specialists with Seneca Family of Agencies and Kristi House “use ‘culturally modified trauma-focused treatment,’ a culturally adapted intervention based on trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy developed for use with Hispanic children.” Kristi House’s Vanessa Ramirez told Madan that “we basically make sure that we incorporate culture, that we bring in cultural aspects like values, rituals, religion into therapy in order to help strengthen the family relationships.”
But they said it’s nevertheless a challenge. Some families complete their sessions using telehealth due to distance. Seneca’s Johanna Navarro-Perez told Madan “it’s not the same as being in person, but we’ve had to make it work. Technology is also a big one since many of these families don’t have access to a phone, tablet or Wi-Fi networks.” But they said it’s also challenging because they haven’t been able to contact all families eligible for services under the court order. According to the report, only about 350 families out of 2,500 have been reached.
“Many of the families are unfindable; they go off the grid and become ghosts,” Navarro-Perez continued to Madan. “Some of their last known addresses were actually detention centers.” And families certainly aren’t to blame for possibly being mistrusting of an incredibly personal service being paid for by the same government that ripped them apart in the first place.
A number of tallies have found that the Trump administration separated 5,500 children from their families since 2017, more than 1,500 of those children before any official policy was implemented in early 2018. But while a federal judge ordered a stop to the policy in June of that year, U.S. immigration officials exploited a loophole in his ruling to separate even more children, sometimes based on outright lies, including falsely accusing parents fleeing gang violence of being gang members themselves.
Republished with permission from Daily Kos.


crooksandliars--2020-09-05--Pete Buttigieg Rolled Right Over Fox News Host Trying To Deny Trump Disrespected Troops

Pete Buttigieg did a phenomenal job laying some blunt truth on Fox News and its viewers about Trump ’ s disrespect for U.S. troops .
Sadly , the supposedly objective host cast doubt on Fox ’ s own reporting that confirmed that behavior .
But on last night ’ s The Story with Martha MacCallum , which airs after Special Report and whose host supposedly embodies “ ultimate journalistic integrity , ” substitute host Jon Scott acted as though nothing had been confirmed by Fox .
“ How do you know it ’ s accurate ?
How do you know @ @ @ @ @ @ @ asked Buttigieg .
Buttigieg had great answers for nearly every question .
BUTTIGIEG : That ’ s easy .
I mean , this is a pattern we ’ ve seen from the president throughout his life .
When he was a young man , he faked a disability so he could avoid serving when it was his turn .
We ’ ve watched him refer to prisoners of war , like John McCain , as losers , with our own eyes .
Look , if you ’ re watching this at home , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is to insult your intelligence .
Today , he denied that he ever called John McCain a loser .
Now again , if you ’ re watching this at home , grab your phone , go on Google , you can see video of him doing it , you can see a tweet of him doing it .
BUTTIGIEG : So , I think it ’ s pretty easy to figure out who to believe .
… Fox News , itself , has confirmed many of the details of this story .
So @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : the president thinks people who play by the rules or people who sacrifice for others are suckers .
He thinks people who pay their taxes are suckers .
He seems to think Christians are suckers .
He ’ ll just hold up the bible as a prop without ever seeming to look into it .
This is part of a clear , consistent , repeated pattern of behavior , although I will say these revelations about just how much this president disrespects the military do represent a new low .
Still ignoring @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cited five present or former Trump staffers who say they were with him at the time in question and that nothing of the kind ever happened .
Of course , he didn ’ t note that neither Gen. John Kelly nor then-Joint Chiefs of Staff , General Joe Dunford , each reportedly present for some of the remarks , have contradicted the reporting .
One of the fallen soldiers Trump disrespected was Kelly 's son .
Buttigieg noted that multiple sources and multiple reports have confirmed the reporting .
“ But if you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , believe your own eyes because this president has been disrespecting the military from the day that he let some sucker , in his view , go in his place to serve in Vietnam because he didn ’ t want to , ” Buttigieg shot back .
Scott seemed nonplussed .
He stumbled a bit before moving on to read quotes from the Trump allies who have denied the reporting .
He never cited Griffin ’ s reporting .
BUTTIGIEG : Look , the president today lied on Twitter about never calling John @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s asking us to believe that OK , he ’ s lying about that today , ‘ cause we can check and see the footage , but he ’ s not lying about the other stuff ?
He must think we ’ re all suckers and the amazing thing to me is how little respect he has for the intelligence of his own supporters .
… Look , this is a lot bigger than whether the president went to a ceremony or not .
This is a fundamental disrespect that we have seen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seen it with our own eyes in the statements he ’ s made in public .
It just turns out that we ’ ve got a lot of people from inside the administration willing to reveal that behind the scenes it ’ s even worse .
Scott again seemed nonplussed .
He changed the subject to Trump ’ s military budget increase .
“ He says he supports the military with everything , including the national checkbook , ” Scott said , still ignoring Griffin 's reporting .
BUTTIGIEG : Well , ask @ @ @ @ @ @ @ went to serve , if somebody you know didn ’ t come back , does the president signing off on some big program to you make up for the insult of him describing Americans ’ war dead as losers ?
To me , the answer ’ s pretty clear .
And , by the way , if you ’ re a Republican and you ’ ve always voted Republican , and it ’ s hard for you to join the many Republicans who are walking away from this president , think about this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gon na look back on this moment and see that you could either be a John McCain Republican or a Donald Trump Republican .
But you got ta choose .
Think about which you ’ d rather be .
That last bit was probably Buttigieg ’ s only mistake .
Because Fox and its viewers long ago chose Trump over McCain .
As great as Buttigieg was , Fox followed up with a spokesman from the Trump campaign , who was allowed to lie without pushback from Scott .
I hope to post @ @ @ @ @ @ @ does not negate the importance of Buttigieg ’ s appearance , in my view .
I think it ’ s important for strong voices to go on Fox and push back against the propaganda .
Even if he didn ’ t wrest a single mind away from devotion to Trump , he planted some important seeds .
You can see why I consider Buttigieg a Top Dog below , from the September 4 , 2020 The Story with Martha MacCallum .
9/5/20 Update : I wrote this post last night and scheduled it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this overnight , I have another nit to pick with Mayor Pete : that he did n't confront Fox 's propaganda .
There 's very little daylight between Fox and Trumpism and the fact that Scott was trying to gaslight viewers by pretending Fox had not verified the essence , is part and parcel of the problem .

Pete Buttigieg did a phenomenal job laying some blunt truth on Fox News and its viewers about Trump’s disrespect for U.S. troops. Sadly, the supposedly objective host cast doubt on Fox’s own reporting that confirmed that behavior.
But on last night’s The Story with Martha MacCallum, which airs after Special Report and whose host supposedly embodies “ultimate journalistic integrity,” substitute host Jon Scott acted as though nothing had been confirmed by Fox. “How do you know it’s accurate? How do you know it’s true?” Scott asked Buttigieg.
Buttigieg had great answers for nearly every question.
BUTTIGIEG: That’s easy. I mean, this is a pattern we’ve seen from the president throughout his life. When he was a young man, he faked a disability so he could avoid serving when it was his turn. We’ve watched him refer to prisoners of war, like John McCain, as losers, with our own eyes. Look, if you’re watching this at home, here’s how willing Donald Trump is to insult your intelligence. Today, he denied that he ever called John McCain a loser. Now again, if you’re watching this at home, grab your phone, go on Google, you can see video of him doing it, you can see a tweet of him doing it.
FACT CHECK: Buttigieg is correct:
Trump tonight: "I never called John a loser"
Video: Trump calling John McCain a loser pic.twitter.com/CKOBsVoBuo https://t.co/sa2lncSJcm — Josh Jordan (@NumbersMuncher) September 4, 2020
BUTTIGIEG: So, I think it’s pretty easy to figure out who to believe. … Fox News, itself, has confirmed many of the details of this story. So, here’s the bottom line: the president thinks people who play by the rules or people who sacrifice for others are suckers. He thinks people who pay their taxes are suckers. He seems to think Christians are suckers. He’ll just hold up the bible as a prop without ever seeming to look into it. This is part of a clear, consistent, repeated pattern of behavior, although I will say these revelations about just how much this president disrespects the military do represent a new low.
Still ignoring Fox’s own reporting, Scott cited five present or former Trump staffers who say they were with him at the time in question and that nothing of the kind ever happened. Of course, he didn’t note that neither Gen. John Kelly nor then-Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Joe Dunford, each reportedly present for some of the remarks, have contradicted the reporting. One of the fallen soldiers Trump disrespected was Kelly's son.
Buttigieg noted that multiple sources and multiple reports have confirmed the reporting. “But if you don’t want to believe that, believe your own eyes because this president has been disrespecting the military from the day that he let some sucker, in his view, go in his place to serve in Vietnam because he didn’t want to,” Buttigieg shot back.
Scott seemed nonplussed. He stumbled a bit before moving on to read quotes from the Trump allies who have denied the reporting. He never cited Griffin’s reporting.
BUTTIGIEG: Look, the president today lied on Twitter about never calling John McCain a loser. Now he’s asking us to believe that OK, he’s lying about that today, ‘cause we can check and see the footage, but he’s not lying about the other stuff? He must think we’re all suckers and the amazing thing to me is how little respect he has for the intelligence of his own supporters. … Look, this is a lot bigger than whether the president went to a ceremony or not. This is a fundamental disrespect that we have seen the president show. We’ve seen it with our own eyes in the statements he’s made in public. It just turns out that we’ve got a lot of people from inside the administration willing to reveal that behind the scenes it’s even worse.
Scott again seemed nonplussed. He changed the subject to Trump’s military budget increase. “He says he supports the military with everything, including the national checkbook,” Scott said, still ignoring Griffin's reporting.
BUTTIGIEG: Well, ask yourself this. If somebody you love went to serve, if somebody you know didn’t come back, does the president signing off on some big program to you make up for the insult of him describing Americans’ war dead as losers? To me, the answer’s pretty clear. And, by the way, if you’re a Republican and you’ve always voted Republican, and it’s hard for you to join the many Republicans who are walking away from this president, think about this. Years later, we’re gonna look back on this moment and see that you could either be a John McCain Republican or a Donald Trump Republican. But you gotta choose. Think about which you’d rather be.
That last bit was probably Buttigieg’s only mistake. Because Fox and its viewers long ago chose Trump over McCain.
As great as Buttigieg was, Fox followed up with a spokesman from the Trump campaign, who was allowed to lie without pushback from Scott. I hope to post about this later.
However, that does not negate the importance of Buttigieg’s appearance, in my view. I think it’s important for strong voices to go on Fox and push back against the propaganda. Even if he didn’t wrest a single mind away from devotion to Trump, he planted some important seeds.
You can see why I consider Buttigieg a Top Dog below, from the September 4, 2020 The Story with Martha MacCallum.
9/5/20 Update: I wrote this post last night and scheduled it for publishing today. After thinking about this overnight, I have another nit to pick with Mayor Pete: that he didn't confront Fox's propaganda. There's very little daylight between Fox and Trumpism and the fact that Scott was trying to gaslight viewers by pretending Fox had not verified the essence, is part and parcel of the problem.
Republished with permission from NewsHounds.


crooksandliars--2020-09-05--Trump Awards Lou Holtz 'Presidential Medal Of Freedom' After Calling Biden 'A Catholic In Name Only'

Joining such other luminaries as Rush Limabaugh , Antonin Scalia , Ed Meese , and Miriam Adelson , one can only surmise that to get one of these things from Trump you must be a truly awful human being .
President Donald Trump on Friday announced he will award the Medal of Freedom to legendary college football coach and supporter Lou Holtz .
`` There 's a man that 's an incredible leader , Lou Holtz .
I 've known him for a long time .
He 's been a friend of mine , '' Trump said Friday .
Holtz @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Dame and South Carolina , was in the briefing room as Trump made the announcement .
He endorsed Trump for President in 2016 .
Holtz seems to have been rewarded for his remarks at the 2020 Republican National Convention .
Lou Holtz 's time to speak at the Republican National Convention was slotted between a nun who touted President Donald Trump 's right to life advocacy and the head of the National Association of Police Organizations who praised Trump 's commitment to supporting police .
Holtz , the legendary Notre Dame football coach @ @ @ @ @ @ @ speech Wednesday as a coach , calling Trump `` a winner , '' a man `` who shows up '' and criticizing his Democrat opponent Joe Biden .
Biden , Holtz said , is a man who ca n't be trusted , has not shown commitment to getting things done and called the Biden-Harris ticket `` the most radically pro-abortion campaign in history .
They ... abandon innocent lives . ''
But his most controversial statement came when Holtz called Biden a `` Catholic in name only . ''
That comment gained criticism @ @ @ @ @ @ @ judge what is inside Biden 's heart .
“ While Coach Lou Holtz is a former coach at Notre Dame , his use of the University ’ s name at the Republican National Convention must not be taken to imply that the University endorses his views , any candidate or any political party .
Moreover , we Catholics should remind ourselves that while we may judge the objective moral quality of another ’ s actions , we must never question the sincerity of another ’ s faith , which is due to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s heart .
In this fractious time , let us remember that our highest calling is to love .
”

Joining such other luminaries as Rush Limabaugh, Antonin Scalia, Ed Meese, and Miriam Adelson, one can only surmise that to get one of these things from Trump you must be a truly awful human being.
Source: CNN
President Donald Trump on Friday announced he will award the Medal of Freedom to legendary college football coach and supporter Lou Holtz. "There's a man that's an incredible leader, Lou Holtz. I've known him for a long time. He's been a friend of mine," Trump said Friday. Holtz, the former head coach of Notre Dame and South Carolina, was in the briefing room as Trump made the announcement. He endorsed Trump for President in 2016.
Holtz seems to have been rewarded for his remarks at the 2020 Republican National Convention.
Source: USA Today
Lou Holtz's time to speak at the Republican National Convention was slotted between a nun who touted President Donald Trump's right to life advocacy and the head of the National Association of Police Organizations who praised Trump's commitment to supporting police. Holtz, the legendary Notre Dame football coach and longtime Republican ally, fashioned his speech Wednesday as a coach, calling Trump "a winner," a man "who shows up" and criticizing his Democrat opponent Joe Biden. Biden, Holtz said, is a man who can't be trusted, has not shown commitment to getting things done and called the Biden-Harris ticket "the most radically pro-abortion campaign in history. They ... abandon innocent lives." But his most controversial statement came when Holtz called Biden a "Catholic in name only." That comment gained criticism from those who said Holtz can't judge what is inside Biden's heart.
Notre Dame President Rev. John I. Jenkins condemned Holtz's remarks, issuing a statement from the university:


crooksandliars--2020-09-05--Progressives: We Have To Win This Definitional Fight

Every Democrat , every progressive with a brain in their head knows the urgency and centrality of winning the 2020 elections and defeating Trump and his authoritarian cronies .
But there is also great urgency and import in winning the central definitional fight with the Trump machine over the nature of what is going on in America right now .
If Trump can succeed at defining the Black Lives Matter protests as merely violence and thuggery , we will not only likely lose this election : we will have lost a historic opportunity to actually make real progress on both @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the most obvious point imaginable , Donald Trump is trying to scare the shit out of voters with his chaos and riots-in-the-streets message .
It is one of the last things he has with the potential to change the dynamics in this race .
What he is doing is overtly conflating protest about police shootings and racial injustice with violence and rioting , saying they are one and the same .
Progressives must not , can not allow this definition of protest and riots to stand .
There is so much going on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be responded to every single day .
Chaos and short attention span are the hallmarks of the Trump campaign .
But this fight over the definition of the Black Lives Matter protests is central to not only the campaign , but the future of racial justice .
When the huge new round of BLM protests began after George Floyd ’ s death , the American people responded with a remarkable amount of empathy and support .
Millions of people of all ages , races , and religions , joined protests all over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ suburbs , and big cities in every state .
Polling showed that two thirds of Americans supported the protesters and their goals for racial justice , which was a remarkable number given past attitudes among white Americans about policing reforms .
Our movement and message were getting through .
The biggest reason the protests were working was the discipline and creativity of the Black Lives Matter movement .
The protests were brilliantly executed , were overwhelmingly peaceful , and drew literally millions of marchers from all walks of life .
They were reminiscent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and John Lewis had so iconically organized in the 1950s and ‘ 60s , except with online organizing and social media adding to the power of them .
The brilliance of those protests and the widespread support coincided with Joe Biden ’ s best polling numbers in the campaign .
Trump and the right-wing , white supremacist militia forces that back him are working very hard to disrupt not only the protests themselves , but the narrative around them .
They want to turn the beauty and power of those protests into something @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and violent and out of control .
Into “ riots '' and ” looting '' and “ thuggery.
” All of this is well known : Trump and his private militias are encouraging heavily armed men to go into cities and be intentionally disruptive .
In some cases , police officers and departments are being overly aggressive and violent in going after peaceful demonstrators .
In other cases , police have been documented in cooperating and coordinating with the right-wing militias .
And Trump constantly is making everything worse , including sending unidentified @ @ @ @ @ @ @ streets and put them into unmarked vans .
Meanwhile , other forces are taking advantage of the demonstrations and the aggressiveness of police and militias countering them .
In some cities , organized crime groups have been taking trucks and breaking into warehouses while protests have been going on , so that the looting can be blamed on the demonstrators .
And yes , while rare , unfortunately some young people tired of being bullied by police and militias are allowing their anger to overcome their common sense and are engaging in violence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the streets is making more people question the righteousness of our cause .
The progressive movement needs to be very clear : the vast majority of protests and protesters are peaceful .
We are going to keep protesting until things actually begin to change , but we reject violence and are going to model the proud non-violent discipline of King , Lewis , and others whose shoulders we stand on .
Democratic Party politicians should be very clear as well .
They should be supporting the BLM protests , and making people understand @ @ @ @ @ @ @ protests are peaceful and that their cause is just , even while rejecting the violence on the streets .
Folks , we have to win this argument over the definition and values of these protests .
We can ’ t let Trump and his team turn them into something they are not .
We win by embracing the discipline of non-violence and by making it clear that Trump ’ s definition of these protests is dead wrong .

Every Democrat, every progressive with a brain in their head knows the urgency and centrality of winning the 2020 elections and defeating Trump and his authoritarian cronies. But there is also great urgency and import in winning the central definitional fight with the Trump machine over the nature of what is going on in America right now. If Trump can succeed at defining the Black Lives Matter protests as merely violence and thuggery, we will not only likely lose this election: we will have lost a historic opportunity to actually make real progress on both racial and economic justice.
To make the most obvious point imaginable, Donald Trump is trying to scare the shit out of voters with his chaos and riots-in-the-streets message. It is one of the last things he has with the potential to change the dynamics in this race. What he is doing is overtly conflating protest about police shootings and racial injustice with violence and rioting, saying they are one and the same.
Progressives must not, cannot allow this definition of protest and riots to stand.
There is so much going on right now, so much bullshit needs to be responded to every single day. Chaos and short attention span are the hallmarks of the Trump campaign. But this fight over the definition of the Black Lives Matter protests is central to not only the campaign, but the future of racial justice. When the huge new round of BLM protests began after George Floyd’s death, the American people responded with a remarkable amount of empathy and support. Millions of people of all ages, races, and religions, joined protests all over the country, in small towns, suburbs, and big cities in every state. Polling showed that two thirds of Americans supported the protesters and their goals for racial justice, which was a remarkable number given past attitudes among white Americans about policing reforms. Our movement and message were getting through.
The biggest reason the protests were working was the discipline and creativity of the Black Lives Matter movement. The protests were brilliantly executed, were overwhelmingly peaceful, and drew literally millions of marchers from all walks of life. They were reminiscent of the kind of protests that MLK and John Lewis had so iconically organized in the 1950s and ‘60s, except with online organizing and social media adding to the power of them. The brilliance of those protests and the widespread support coincided with Joe Biden’s best polling numbers in the campaign.
Trump and the right-wing, white supremacist militia forces that back him are working very hard to disrupt not only the protests themselves, but the narrative around them. They want to turn the beauty and power of those protests into something far more unsettling, into something chaotic and violent and out of control. Into “riots" and ”looting" and “thuggery.”
All of this is well known: Trump and his private militias are encouraging heavily armed men to go into cities and be intentionally disruptive. In some cases, police officers and departments are being overly aggressive and violent in going after peaceful demonstrators. In other cases, police have been documented in cooperating and coordinating with the right-wing militias. And Trump constantly is making everything worse, including sending unidentified federal cops to grab protesters off the streets and put them into unmarked vans.
Meanwhile, other forces are taking advantage of the demonstrations and the aggressiveness of police and militias countering them. In some cities, organized crime groups have been taking trucks and breaking into warehouses while protests have been going on, so that the looting can be blamed on the demonstrators. And yes, while rare, unfortunately some young people tired of being bullied by police and militias are allowing their anger to overcome their common sense and are engaging in violence themselves.
The violence and chaos in the streets is making more people question the righteousness of our cause.
The progressive movement needs to be very clear: the vast majority of protests and protesters are peaceful. We are going to keep protesting until things actually begin to change, but we reject violence and are going to model the proud non-violent discipline of King, Lewis, and others whose shoulders we stand on.
Democratic Party politicians should be very clear as well. They should be supporting the BLM protests, and making people understand the truth, that most of these protests are peaceful and that their cause is just, even while rejecting the violence on the streets.
Folks, we have to win this argument over the definition and values of these protests. We can’t let Trump and his team turn them into something they are not. We win by embracing the discipline of non-violence and by making it clear that Trump’s definition of these protests is dead wrong.


crooksandliars--2020-09-07--ACLU Report: GA Illegally Purged Hundreds Of Thousands Of Valid Voters

Georgia has been quietly and illegally purging hundreds of thousands of valid registered voters from the state rolls for the better half of a decade , according to a blockbuster report from the American Civil Liberties Union .
Via HillReporter.com : “ Given our findings of what appears to be large-scale disenfranchisement of legitimate voters , our foundation has chosen , in the public interest , to make our findings available to the ACLU of Georgia for review in preparation for making our findings public .
We have also created a website where Georgians may look up their names to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” Greg Palast , the firm ’ s principal investigator , wrote to the ACLU on Monday .
Georgia ACLU Executive Director Andrea Young spoke to CNN following the report ’ s release .
“ On the one hand , I was deeply saddened and on the other side , not entirely surprised , ” Young told CNN , adding that Georgia ’ s voter roll management system is still “ prone to tremendous error.
” [ ... ] The results , published on Monday , are astonishing .
Of the more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the rolls – nearly four percent of the total number of registered voters in the state – the study discovered that “ 198,351 Georgia voters who supposedly moved from their registration addresses who , in fact , have not moved at all , and therefore were wrongly purged , a 63.3 % error rate.
” This is a conservative estimate , however , because the report “ left out of this list those voters whose addresses we were unable to confirm , ” the ACLU explains .

Georgia has been quietly and illegally purging hundreds of thousands of valid registered voters from the state rolls for the better half of a decade, according to a blockbuster report from the American Civil Liberties Union. Via HillReporter.com:
“Given our findings of what appears to be large-scale disenfranchisement of legitimate voters, our foundation has chosen, in the public interest, to make our findings available to the ACLU of Georgia for review in preparation for making our findings public. We have also created a website where Georgians may look up their names to check if they have been wrongly disenfranchised,” Greg Palast, the firm’s principal investigator, wrote to the ACLU on Monday.
Georgia ACLU Executive Director Andrea Young spoke to CNN following the report’s release.
“On the one hand, I was deeply saddened and on the other side, not entirely surprised,” Young told CNN, adding that Georgia’s voter roll management system is still “prone to tremendous error.”
[...] The results, published on Monday, are astonishing. Of the more than 300,000 names that were purged from the rolls – nearly four percent of the total number of registered voters in the state – the study discovered that “198,351 Georgia voters who supposedly moved from their registration addresses who, in fact, have not moved at all, and therefore were wrongly purged, a 63.3% error rate.” This is a conservative estimate, however, because the report “left out of this list those voters whose addresses we were unable to confirm,” the ACLU explains.


crooksandliars--2020-09-07--REPORT: Louis DeJoy May Have Broken Campaign Finance Laws AND Lied To Congress About It

Looks like Louis DeJoy may be the latest Trump administration official to earn himself the label `` indicted '' next to his name if reports of potential federal and state crimes are true .
On Sunday the Washington Post reported some very disturbing details about how DeJoy raised funds for the Republican Party while running businesses in North Carolina using a practice that `` left many employees feeling pressured to make political contributions to GOP candidates '' which reportedly led to DeJoy reimbursing them `` through bonuses '' at work - a practice which is patently illegal .
DeJoy was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ testimony just a few weeks ago to Congress and he said he had never reimbursed employees - so , if true , he lied to Congress as well - which is ANOTHER crime .
Five different people who worked at New Breed Logistics , DeJoy 's former company , say they were `` urged '' to `` write checks and attend fundraisers '' to raise money for Republicans running for Congress or the White House .
Two other employees who were familiar with the payroll system told the Post that DeJoy would personally @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be boosted to help defray the cost of their contributions '' which is completely illegal .
David Young , DeJoy 's former director of HR , told the Post “ Louis was a national fundraiser for the Republican Party .
He asked employees for money .
We gave him the money , and then he reciprocated by giving us big bonuses .
When we got our bonuses , let ’ s just say they were bigger , they exceeded expectations — and that covered the tax and everything else.
” Another executive , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up Young 's statement , describing how DeJoy would increase compensation for employees who made contributions to Republicans , personally `` instructing managers to award bonuses to specific individuals . ''
The anonymous employee said : “ he would ask employees to make contributions at the same time that he would say , ‘ I ’ ll get it back to you down the road ' . ''
A spokesman for DeJoy said DeJoy was `` not aware that any employees had felt pressured to make donations .
LOL .
That is not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if people are willing to go on the record to explain the scheme to a grand jury .
The spokesman refused to comment on the reimbursement scheme , only saying that `` DeJoy believes that all campaign fundraising laws and regulations should be complied with in all respects.
” Except , apparently , when it comes to him .
During his testimony in front of Congress on August 24th DeJoy was asked DIRECTLY if he had reimbursed employees for political donations .
He denied it .
Here is exchange : Oh .
So @ @ @ @ @ @ @ To Congress .
Which is a crime .
The Washington Post investigated the donations made by employees of New Breed and detected unique patterms where donations were made to Republican candidates `` with the same amount often given by multiple people on the same day .
Between 2000 and 2014 , 124 individuals who worked for the company together gave more than $ 1 million to federal and state GOP candidates .
Many had not previously made political donations , and have not made any since leaving the company , public records show @ @ @ @ @ @ @ employees gave a combined $ 700 to Democrats . ''
That would be something interesting for authorities to investigate .
A reminder : it is totally legal to *encourage* employees to donate .
But reimbursing them for those contributions is against both state and federal election laws under something called a `` straw-donor scheme '' which is a way people try to get around contribution limits if they have maxed out their individual donations .
In essence , it hides the real source of the money .
Shady .
And illegal , if @ @ @ @ @ @ @ violations have a five-year statute of limitations , so we are most likely past that .
And Trump would definitely have pardoned him .
But there is NO statute of limitations in North Carolina for state campaign finance violations and Trump has no pardon power for state violations .
Oh , and lying to Congress .
That is just 2 weeks old .
It will be fascinating to see if this is investigated further and what , if any , ramifications DeJoy suffers due to lying to Congress .
Is this yet another @ @ @ @ @ @ @ None of this would have come to light had DeJoy just stayed away from the Trump administration .
But the desire for power draws these criminals to the firepit , only for their crimes to be put on full display .

Looks like Louis DeJoy may be the latest Trump administration official to earn himself the label "indicted" next to his name if reports of potential federal and state crimes are true. On Sunday the Washington Post reported some very disturbing details about how DeJoy raised funds for the Republican Party while running businesses in North Carolina using a practice that "left many employees feeling pressured to make political contributions to GOP candidates" which reportedly led to DeJoy reimbursing them "through bonuses" at work - a practice which is patently illegal. DeJoy was actually asked about this directly during his testimony just a few weeks ago to Congress and he said he had never reimbursed employees - so, if true, he lied to Congress as well - which is ANOTHER crime.
Five different people who worked at New Breed Logistics, DeJoy's former company, say they were "urged" to "write checks and attend fundraisers" to raise money for Republicans running for Congress or the White House. Two other employees who were familiar with the payroll system told the Post that DeJoy would personally "instruct that bonus payments to staffers be boosted to help defray the cost of their contributions" which is completely illegal.
David Young, DeJoy's former director of HR, told the Post “Louis was a national fundraiser for the Republican Party. He asked employees for money. We gave him the money, and then he reciprocated by giving us big bonuses. When we got our bonuses, let’s just say they were bigger, they exceeded expectations — and that covered the tax and everything else.”
Another executive, who wanted to remain anonymous, backed up Young's statement, describing how DeJoy would increase compensation for employees who made contributions to Republicans, personally "instructing managers to award bonuses to specific individuals." The anonymous employee said: “he would ask employees to make contributions at the same time that he would say, ‘I’ll get it back to you down the road'."
Illegal. Completely illegal.
A spokesman for DeJoy said DeJoy was "not aware that any employees had felt pressured to make donations. LOL. That is not going to fly in court, especially if people are willing to go on the record to explain the scheme to a grand jury. The spokesman refused to comment on the reimbursement scheme, only saying that "DeJoy believes that all campaign fundraising laws and regulations should be complied with in all respects.” Except, apparently, when it comes to him.
During his testimony in front of Congress on August 24th DeJoy was asked DIRECTLY if he had reimbursed employees for political donations. He denied it. Here is exchange:
Aug. 24, 2020
COOPER: Did you pay back several of your top executives for contributing to Trump's campaign by bonus-ing or rewarding them?
DEJOY: That's an outrageous claim, sir, and I resent it. … The answer is no. … I'm fully aware of legal campaign contributions. pic.twitter.com/3OjJK9U0on — JM Rieger (@RiegerReport) September 6, 2020
Oh. So....that would be a lie. To Congress. Which is a crime.
The Washington Post investigated the donations made by employees of New Breed and detected unique patterms where donations were made to Republican candidates "with the same amount often given by multiple people on the same day. Between 2000 and 2014, 124 individuals who worked for the company together gave more than $1 million to federal and state GOP candidates. Many had not previously made political donations, and have not made any since leaving the company, public records show. During the same period, nine employees gave a combined $700 to Democrats."
That would be something interesting for authorities to investigate.
A reminder: it is totally legal to *encourage* employees to donate. But reimbursing them for those contributions is against both state and federal election laws under something called a "straw-donor scheme" which is a way people try to get around contribution limits if they have maxed out their individual donations. In essence, it hides the real source of the money. Shady. And illegal, if that wasn't clear.
The federal violations have a five-year statute of limitations, so we are most likely past that. And Trump would definitely have pardoned him. But there is NO statute of limitations in North Carolina for state campaign finance violations and Trump has no pardon power for state violations. Oh, and lying to Congress. That is just 2 weeks old.
It will be fascinating to see if this is investigated further and what, if any, ramifications DeJoy suffers due to lying to Congress. Is this yet another instance of Everything Trump Touches Dies? None of this would have come to light had DeJoy just stayed away from the Trump administration. But the desire for power draws these criminals to the firepit, only for their crimes to be put on full display.


crooksandliars--2020-09-07--Online Backlash Builds Against Trump Supporter's Racist Display

A Trump supporter is facing backlash online after his truck was allegedly spotted with a racist Trump 2020 campaign message @ @ @ @ @ “ Trump 2020 ” sign was posted by Twitter user Ravi Mahapatra .
The sign @ @ @ @ @ by “ Trump 2020.
” After obtaining the truck ’ s license plate , social @ @ @ @ @ as Austin J. Cordis .
Crooks and Liars was not able to independently confirm the @ @ @ @ @ “ Why are you such a loser ?
” one commenter asked .
“ Don @ @ @ @ @ you ’ re out of a job soon , ” one person advised .
“ @ @ @ @ @ raised Nebraskan- people like you are the reason folks everywhere else assume all of us @ @ @ @ @ redneck fucking yokels , ” another commenter wrote .
After some users speculated that Cordis @ @ @ @ @ another related company , AKRS Equipment insisted in a comment that neither company currently employs @ @ @ @ @

A Trump supporter is facing backlash online after his truck was allegedly spotted with a racist Trump 2020 campaign message.
A photo of the “Trump 2020” sign was posted by Twitter user Ravi Mahapatra. The sign included a racist phrase followed by “Trump 2020.”
In Lincoln, this evening pic.twitter.com/hAc6sHaGMj — Ravi Mahapatra (@doctor_rpm) September 6, 2020
After obtaining the truck’s license plate, social media users identified the owner as Austin J. Cordis. Crooks and Liars was not able to independently confirm the driver’s identity.
Cordis’ Facebook page was inundated with negative comments.
“Why are you such a loser?” one commenter asked.
“Congrats, your racism made twitter,” another noted.
“Don’t be shocked if you’re out of a job soon,” one person advised.
“As a relocated born and raised Nebraskan- people like you are the reason folks everywhere else assume all of us are backwater, slack-jawed, redneck fucking yokels,” another commenter wrote.
After some users speculated that Cordis worked for John Deere or another related company, AKRS Equipment insisted in a comment that neither company currently employs the person in question.


crooksandliars--2020-09-07--Blue America Endorses "Good Trouble" Candidate Nikema Williams

Georgia 's 5th congressional district -- most of Atlanta -- has n't been in play since 1986 , the legendary John Lewis ' first term .
In fact , Republicans have never run a serious campaign in the D+34 district and Lewis usually ran unopposed .
This cycle , Trump pardoned a crackpot right-wing sociopath and felon , Angela Stanton-King , who had served almost 3 years of her prison sentence for running a car theft ring , a kind of female , later-day Darrell Issa .
Two weeks after Trump pardoned her , she announced she was running against @ @ @ @ @ @ @ everyone except Trump , who hated him with the passion of the KKK thug that he 's always been at heart .
After Lewis died , the Democrats nominated state Senator Nikema Williams to run for his seat .
Williams , who is also the chair of the Georgia Democratic Party , was diagnosed with COVID-19 in March and has since fully recovered and her support for Medicare for All has grown even stronger as the result of her experience .
In 2018 , she was arrested at a Black Lives Matter demonstration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all absentee ballots be counted in the gubernatorial election , which was opposed by the Republicans .
Endorsed this week by Blue America , I asked Nikema to introduce herself to Blue America members .
Please consider contributing to her campaign if you like what she has to say -- and if you would like to see more activists in Congress .
Just click on the ActBlue 2020 congressional thermometer below .
The stakes are high and GA-05 deserves a representative who will put themselves on the line , in the same way @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will live up to the legacy of Good Trouble while moving us closer to the full promise of America for generations to come .
Someone who will fearlessly center those most marginalized in every decision .
Someone willing to live out loud and on purpose fighting for the promise of America .
That someone is me , Nikema Williams , the Democratic Nominee for Georgia ’ s 5th congressional district .
My fight began in rural Alabama , where I rode around on the back of my grandpa ’ s pickup truck and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ knew who to vote for .
Little did I know , the impact this would have on me , instilling the importance of voting .
I grew up reading textbooks that spoke about my great-aunt , Autherine Lucy as she became the first Black student admitted to the University of Alabama and this ingrained into me a sense of standing up to injustice and demanding equal and fair treatment .
I ’ ve worked since I was 16 years old and needed a work permit .
My first job was a union job @ @ @ @ @ @ @ UFCW as I worked as a cashier at Food World .
Through the combination of scholarships and Pell grants , I attended Talladega College , an HBCU in Alabama .
I have a first-hand understanding of the struggles American families face and this is what makes me most equipped to be the voice of GA-05 in Congress .
I know what it 's like to have my vote suppressed -- in the last election , I never received my absentee ballot .
So I waited in line for five hours just to cast @ @ @ @ @ @ @ way that in America , health care is not a human right .
When my mother was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer at the age of 46 , she couldn ’ t afford the treatments .
My sister and I took turns covering the costs of appointments just to keep her alive .
And as the mother of a 5-year-old who just started virtual kindergarten , I understand the importance of affordable high-quality child care and a public school education .
In short , I am not your conventional candidate -- I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ political connections .
I am someone who will work around the clock to ensure Georgians are able to thrive regardless of their zip code .
I first ran for office in 2017 because I understood the power of representation , and I was determined to be a voice at the state Senate who would fight for the issues that mattered most to the district .
While at the state Senate I led the charge to fully and equitably fund our public schools , expand access to qualify affordable healthcare , and combat the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our communities away from the ballot box .
On November 13 , 2018 the lessons of getting into `` Good Trouble '' became more real than ever .
I was standing with my constituents speaking out and demanding that every vote be counted after the disastrous 2018 election , when state troopers rushed protesters into the Capitol , and arrested several of us demonstrating .
I was taken out of the state capitol where I serve as a senator , with zip ties on my wrists , to the Fulton County jail , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that every vote be counted in the wake of a disastrous election .
It is moments like these that remind us of how much work we have yet to do .
I am ready to get to Congress so I can take my lived experiences with me and fight for an America that allows everyone to thrive , not merely survive .
An America that finally lives up to its promise , for everyone .

Georgia's 5th congressional district-- most of Atlanta-- hasn't been in play since 1986, the legendary John Lewis' first term. In fact, Republicans have never run a serious campaign in the D+34 district and Lewis usually ran unopposed. This cycle, Trump pardoned a crackpot right-wing sociopath and felon, Angela Stanton-King, who had served almost 3 years of her prison sentence for running a car theft ring, a kind of female, later-day Darrell Issa. Two weeks after Trump pardoned her, she announced she was running against John Lewis, a beloved congressman by everyone except Trump, who hated him with the passion of the KKK thug that he's always been at heart.
After Lewis died, the Democrats nominated state Senator Nikema Williams to run for his seat. Williams, who is also the chair of the Georgia Democratic Party, was diagnosed with COVID-19 in March and has since fully recovered and her support for Medicare for All has grown even stronger as the result of her experience. In 2018, she was arrested at a Black Lives Matter demonstration in the state Capitol, demanding that all absentee ballots be counted in the gubernatorial election, which was opposed by the Republicans.
Endorsed this week by Blue America, I asked Nikema to introduce herself to Blue America members. Please consider contributing to her campaign if you like what she has to say-- and if you would like to see more activists in Congress. Just click on the ActBlue 2020 congressional thermometer below.


crooksandliars--2020-09-06--Kamala Harris: Don't Trust The Guy Who Wants Us To Inject Bleach

Sen. Kamala Harris told CNN 's Dana Bash that what we 've learned in the course of the Trump administration @ @ @ @ @ anyone can trust whenever he talks especially on the coronavirus .
Trump promised that there @ @ @ @ @ , maybe even before the election , a claim which almost every expert has refuted @ @ @ @ @ CNN host if she would take the vaccine , Harris replied , `` I will @ @ @ @ @ trust Donald Trump . ''
`` I will not take his word for it , @ @ @ @ @ He wants us to inject bleach .
I -- no , I will not take @ @ @ @

Sen. Kamala Harris told CNN's Dana Bash that what we've learned in the course of the Trump administration is there's little that anyone can trust whenever he talks especially on the coronavirus.
Trump promised that there will be a vaccine soon, maybe even before the election, a claim which almost every expert has refuted.
When asked by the CNN host if she would take the vaccine, Harris replied, "I will say that I would not trust Donald Trump."
"I will not take his word for it," she stressed. "He wants us to inject bleach. I -- no, I will not take his word."


crooksandliars--2020-09-06--'Anxiety Is The Autocrat's Friend': Putin Expert Warns About Trump

Masha Gessen , authority on Putin , Russia and autocracy , joined AM Joy on Sunday morning to talk about how we can best deal with the torrent of insanity that Donald Trump is unleashing on the American people right now .
Her advice is so needed as we head into these crucial 2 months before election day , where the craziness is already ratcheted up to an 11 .
GESSEN : Thank you so much for having me , thank you for the kind words .
When Trump was first elected I wrote an essay called 'Autocracy rules for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to talk about what I learned in my many years of living in Putin 's Russia and writing about Putin and what I thought Americans might not realize was might be awaiting us and unfortunately I was right .
There are a lot of things that I learned that really did happen here.I think Americans have this incredible faith in our institutions as basically the civil religion and institutions ca n't function in a vacuum .
They ca n't function in the face of the bad actor which is what donald Trump has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the questions that I had for you that really struck is this idea that Putin oftentimes likes to deploy anxiety among the Russian people to ensure that they kind -- he becomes a magnet back to them .
We are seeing very similar tactics right now with Trump , with the anxiety that he seems to want to talk about all around law and order .
Can you speak a bit to that ?
GESSEN : You know , anxiety is the autocrat 's wrath .
I think Trump got elected in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of American people .
Anxieties that are there .
Economic anxieties .
Anxiety in the face of the certain and unclear future and a future -- you know , we do n't have a common vision about .
So Trump manipulates the anxieties quite masterfully , and this is what we saw with autocrats .
They say I 'm going to take you back to the imaginary past when you felt comfortable , when the world was n't changing all around you and when things that scared you were n't on your doorstep @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up , right ?
It 's a fascinating thing because he is president , right ?
He should be taking responsibility for this , but again , we see this all over the world .
We have seen this with Putin who casts about and says , we 're on the verge of catastrophe .
I 'm the only person who can save us , even though he brought the country to the verge of catastrophe .
HOST : So how can voters really become clear eyed to this as a tactic of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ same versus fear of what an alternative person can look like ?
How can people combat that ?
I think that 's an essence that we can control if we 're enlightened with what is happening around us ?
GESSEN : Well , I think naming it is the first step .
I think that understanding the tactics , right ?
I think that stepping into the traps that Trump lays is something -- it 's difficult to avoid .
He 's actually -- it 's always a trap because whenever he says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a law it is , we in the media are in the position of amplifying it .
How can we lessen the damage , how can we reduce the harm from these statements , anxiety provoking statements and plain lies .
One way is by calling lies lies by resisting the urge to keep raising the bar for calling something a lie .
It does n't have to be an outrageous lie but we have to call it a lie instead of saying it 's an unsubstantiated statement .
Call it a lie @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Talk about what he 's actually doing .
When he lies .
When he talks about law and order , right ?
Do n't step into the trap of talking about law and order .
Talk about Trumpism instead .
HOST : And I try to tell my kids , a lie is a lie .
They 're 6 and 8 .
But my last question to you which I thought was really revelatory , you made a distinction between Trump and his nationalism versus Putin and his nationalism .
You hint @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but he still deeply loves his country but it 's cross to bear .
You 're saying that 's not necessarily the case , that Trump is not patriotic .
Can you speak to those differences and why you think this ?
GESSEN : It 's amazing to me that we have a leader that is even more cynical than Vladimir Putin .
That is something where even my imagination would have stalled .
I have a great catastrophic imagination , but I think what Putin has -- he has created for himself @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he bears the cross of Russia only his shoulder and the reason he has to change the constitution and make himself president for life is because it would indeed fall apart without him .
It 's crazy , you know , it 's a delusion .
It 's a self-aggrandizing illusion , but not as cynical as what Donald Trump is doing , which is just -- I do n't think he has a concept of that .

Masha Gessen, authority on Putin, Russia and autocracy, joined AM Joy on Sunday morning to talk about how we can best deal with the torrent of insanity that Donald Trump is unleashing on the American people right now. Her advice is so needed as we head into these crucial 2 months before election day, where the craziness is already ratcheted up to an 11.
GESSEN: Thank you so much for having me, thank you for the kind words. When Trump was first elected I wrote an essay called 'Autocracy rules for survival.' This was an attempt to talk about what I learned in my many years of living in Putin's Russia and writing about Putin and what I thought Americans might not realize was might be awaiting us and unfortunately I was right. There are a lot of things that I learned that really did happen here.I think Americans have this incredible faith in our institutions as basically the civil religion and institutions can't function in a vacuum. They can't function in the face of the bad actor which is what donald Trump has proved to me.
HOST: One of the questions that I had for you that really struck is this idea that Putin oftentimes likes to deploy anxiety among the Russian people to ensure that they kind -- he becomes a magnet back to them. We are seeing very similar tactics right now with Trump, with the anxiety that he seems to want to talk about all around law and order. Can you speak a bit to that?
GESSEN: You know, anxiety is the autocrat's wrath. I think Trump got elected in large part by speaking to the anxieties of American people. Anxieties that are there. Economic anxieties. Anxiety in the face of the certain and unclear future and a future -- you know, we don't have a common vision about. So Trump manipulates the anxieties quite masterfully, and this is what we saw with autocrats. They say I'm going to take you back to the imaginary past when you felt comfortable, when the world wasn't changing all around you and when things that scared you weren't on your doorstep. Donald Trump has just ramped it up, right? It's a fascinating thing because he is president, right? He should be taking responsibility for this, but again, we see this all over the world. We have seen this with Putin who casts about and says, we're on the verge of catastrophe. I'm the only person who can save us, even though he brought the country to the verge of catastrophe.
HOST: So how can voters really become clear eyed to this as a tactic of creating anxiousness, to continue with the same versus fear of what an alternative person can look like? How can people combat that? I think that's an essence that we can control if we're enlightened with what is happening around us?
GESSEN: Well, I think naming it is the first step. I think that understanding the tactics, right? I think that stepping into the traps that Trump lays is something -- it's difficult to avoid. He's actually -- it's always a trap because whenever he says something, no matter how much of a law it is, we in the media are in the position of amplifying it. How can we lessen the damage, how can we reduce the harm from these statements, anxiety provoking statements and plain lies. One way is by calling lies lies by resisting the urge to keep raising the bar for calling something a lie. It doesn't have to be an outrageous lie but we have to call it a lie instead of saying it's an unsubstantiated statement. Call it a lie. And approach Trumpism as a system. Talk about what he's actually doing. When he lies. When he talks about law and order, right? Don't step into the trap of talking about law and order. Talk about Trumpism instead.
HOST: And I try to tell my kids, a lie is a lie. They're 6 and 8. But my last question to you which I thought was really revelatory, you made a distinction between Trump and his nationalism versus Putin and his nationalism. You hint at the fact that Putin heads Russia but he still deeply loves his country but it's cross to bear. You're saying that's not necessarily the case, that Trump is not patriotic. Can you speak to those differences and why you think this?
GESSEN: It's amazing to me that we have a leader that is even more cynical than Vladimir Putin. That is something where even my imagination would have stalled. I have a great catastrophic imagination, but I think what Putin has -- he has created for himself a sort of a personal myth that he bears the cross of Russia only his shoulder and the reason he has to change the constitution and make himself president for life is because it would indeed fall apart without him. It's crazy, you know, it's a delusion. It's a self-aggrandizing illusion, but not as cynical as what Donald Trump is doing, which is just -- I don't think he has a concept of that.


crooksandliars--2020-09-06--Portland Mayoral Candidate: Trump Has Been 'Pissing All Over The Constitution'

Fox News ' Trump major suck-up Jesse Watters got an earful from Sarah Iannarone about Trump 's focus on Portland @ @ @ @ @ from COVID19 during this pandemic .
Watters obviously had Iannarone on his show because Iannarone @ @ @ @ @ second to Ted Wheeler during the primary ) supports antifa 's main objective to fight @ @ @ @ @ Fox News ' # 1 target to help reelect Trump .
Watters ' goal was @ @ @ @ @ violence , mayhem and murder ( Watters never mentioned the white supremacists that are murdering @ @ @ @ @ ) but Iannarone immediately came out and says she 's against all violence and they @ @ @ @ @ .
`` If Trump wants to hold every vandal responsible for graffiti accountable then we @ @ @ @ @ pissing all over the Constitution , '' she said .
This stunned Watters and he @ @ @ @ @ get her to say she supported `` this Antifa violence . ''
`` It 's @ @ @ @ @ '' she said again and said all violence is unacceptable .

Fox News' Trump major suck-up Jesse Watters got an earful from Sarah Iannarone about Trump's focus on Portland instead of the 180,000+ deaths from COVID19 during this pandemic.
Watters obviously had Iannarone on his show because Iannarone (she finished a distant second to Ted Wheeler during the primary) supports antifa's main objective to fight against fascism. Antifascists are Fox News' #1 target to help reelect Trump.
Watters' goal was to get her to support violence, mayhem and murder (Watters never mentioned the white supremacists that are murdering protesters in Trump's name) but Iannarone immediately came out and says she's against all violence and they should all be held accountable.
"If Trump wants to hold every vandal responsible for graffiti accountable then we should hold Trump accountable for pissing all over the Constitution," she said.
This stunned Watters and he changed tactics and tried to get her to say she supported "this Antifa violence."
"It's good to oppose fascism," she said again and said all violence is unacceptable.


crooksandliars--2020-09-06--Rep. Val Demings: 'Trump Threw Fire' On Racial Unrest

Martha Raddatz tried really hard to put the blame for ongoing racial unrest on Joe Biden , but Rep. Val Demings was having none of it .
Because how can a man who is not President be responsible ?
?
?
The blame belongs squarely with Donald Trump .
And Demings made that point crystal clear .
RADDATZ : A recent ABC News/Ipsos poll shows 55 percent of voters think President Trump 's rhetoric on the protests is making things worse , but 49 percent say Biden 's response to the protests is n't having any impact one way or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do for his messaging to break through ?
It 's something we saw along the trail this week .
DEMINGS : Well , let me say this .
President Donald John Trump is the commander in chief .
And so the buck stops with him .
And I said , weeks ago , that while America was going through civil unrest in all 50 states , quite frankly , America was on fire , we had a president , a commander-in-chief who with us walking around with a gasoline can , not trying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ actually throwing fire on an already volatile situation .
I believe that Vice President Biden is on the right track .
You 've heard him talk about peaceful protests , but he 's also talked about accountability , regardless of who those involved in violence should be held accountable .
And he also talked about supporting good police officers as we should all do , but also holding the bad ones accountable .
That 's how we 're going to get to the place where we need to get .

Martha Raddatz tried really hard to put the blame for ongoing racial unrest on Joe Biden, but Rep. Val Demings was having none of it. Because how can a man who is not President be responsible??? The blame belongs squarely with Donald Trump. And Demings made that point crystal clear.
RADDATZ: A recent ABC News/Ipsos poll shows 55 percent of voters think President Trump's rhetoric on the protests is making things worse, but 49 percent say Biden's response to the protests isn't having any impact one way or another.
What does he need to do for his messaging to break through? It's something we saw along the trail this week.
DEMINGS: Well, let me say this. President Donald John Trump is the commander in chief. And so the buck stops with him.
And I said, weeks ago, that while America was going through civil unrest in all 50 states, quite frankly, America was on fire, we had a president, a commander-in-chief who with us walking around with a gasoline can, not trying to sow peace and calm, but actually throwing fire on an already volatile situation.
I believe that Vice President Biden is on the right track. You've heard him talk about peaceful protests, but he's also talked about accountability, regardless of who those involved in violence should be held accountable. And he also talked about supporting good police officers as we should all do, but also holding the bad ones accountable. That's how we're going to get to the place where we need to get.


crooksandliars--2020-09-06--Fox News Host Rips Trump For Trying To 'Cancel' Veteran Military Reporter: 'She Was Doing Her Job'

Fox News host Howard Kurtz on Sunday came to the defense of network correspondent Jennifer Griffin after President Donald Trump @ @ @ @ @ fired because she confirmed details of a report claiming that he disparaged military veterans .
@ @ @ @ @ program , Kurtz hosted a panel discussion about the drawbacks of anonymous sources in response @ @ @ @ @ on Trump 's alleged troubling view of soldiers and veterans .
Kurtz noted that the @ @ @ @ @ part by Fox News reporter Jennifer Griffin .
`` President Trump has called for Jennifer @ @ @ @ @ '' Kurtz explained .
`` This is one of the fairest , most conscientious reporters @ @ @ @ @ former war correspondent , has done this throughout administrations .
And she was n't offering @ @ @ @ @ her job . ''
`` It was fine for the president to attack the story @ @ @ @ @ `` But he really needs trying to stop trying to cancel journalists based on reporting @ @ @ @ @ ''

Fox News host Howard Kurtz on Sunday came to the defense of network correspondent Jennifer Griffin after President Donald Trump called for her to be fired because she confirmed details of a report claiming that he disparaged military veterans.
On his Fox News Sunday program, Kurtz hosted a panel discussion about the drawbacks of anonymous sources in response to The Atlantic's report on Trump's alleged troubling view of soldiers and veterans. Kurtz noted that the report had been confirmed in part by Fox News reporter Jennifer Griffin.
"President Trump has called for Jennifer Griffin to be fired," Kurtz explained. "This is one of the fairest, most conscientious reporters on the planet, a former war correspondent, has done this throughout administrations. And she wasn't offering opinion. She was doing her job."
"It was fine for the president to attack the story," he added. "But he really needs trying to stop trying to cancel journalists based on reporting he doesn't like."


crooksandliars--2020-09-06--Trump Falls Back On Racism To Distract And Divert

Prznint Stupid reaches into his bag of tricks to distract us and rally Possum Hollar , and pulls out his ol ’ stand-by : White Privilege .
“ President Trump is moving to revamp federal agencies ’ racial sensitivity trainings , casting some of them as ‘ divisive ’ and ‘ un-American , ’ according to a memo by the White House Office of Management and Budget .
“ In the two-page memo , OMB Director Russell Vought says Trump has asked him to prevent federal agencies from spending millions in taxpayer dollars on these training sessions .
Vought says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up with a list of all contracts related to training sessions involving ‘ white privilege ’ or ‘ critical race theory , ’ and do everything possible within the law to cancel those contracts , the memo states .
“ The memo , released on Friday , also tells all federal agencies to identify and if possible cancel contracts that involve teaching that America is an “ inherently racist or evil country.
’ ” You can read the memo here .
You don ’ t have to be Kreskin to see what he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and frankly it might work .
To the degree that Possum Hollar is patriotic and might be PO ’ ed about Commander Bunnypants dissing the troops , he knows for a fact that racism is always going to be their first love .
BTW , Hair Füror is tweeting and retweeting all morning –his racist base are singing his praises about not spending tax dollars on “ indoctrination.
” I stopped after about 20 tweets .
I guess this is also now a Claim Chowder in the same post .

Prznint Stupid reaches into his bag of tricks to distract us and rally Possum Hollar, and pulls out his ol’ stand-by: White Privilege.
White House directs federal agencies to cancel race-related training sessions it calls ‘un-American propaganda’
“President Trump is moving to revamp federal agencies’ racial sensitivity trainings, casting some of them as ‘divisive’ and ‘un-American,’ according to a memo by the White House Office of Management and Budget. “In the two-page memo, OMB Director Russell Vought says Trump has asked him to prevent federal agencies from spending millions in taxpayer dollars on these training sessions. Vought says OMB will instruct federal agencies to come up with a list of all contracts related to training sessions involving ‘white privilege’ or ‘critical race theory,’ and do everything possible within the law to cancel those contracts, the memo states. “The memo, released on Friday, also tells all federal agencies to identify and if possible cancel contracts that involve teaching that America is an “inherently racist or evil country.’”
You can read the memo here.
You don’t have to be Kreskin to see what he’s trying to do here, and frankly it might work. To the degree that Possum Hollar is patriotic and might be PO’ed about Commander Bunnypants dissing the troops, he knows for a fact that racism is always going to be their first love.
BTW, Hair Füror is tweeting and retweeting all morning –his racist base are singing his praises about not spending tax dollars on “indoctrination.” I stopped after about 20 tweets. I guess this is also now a Claim Chowder in the same post.
Republished with permission from Mock Paper Scissors.


crooksandliars--2020-09-07--What Happened To All The Money Trump Raised?

Why are they pinching pennies ?
Why it matters : The campaign ’ s view is that Trump will get his message out , and he depends less on paid media than normal politicians .
But the number of states Trump has to worry about has actually grown , and Joe Biden ’ s massive August fundraising haul has given his campaign a lift as early voting begins .
Trump and the Republicans have raised a boatload of money .
What have they spent it on ?
Is it all one big grift ?
( Don ’ t answer that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ July .
I don ’ t think they ’ ve reported their haul for August .
The Biden campaign raised a record shattering 365 million so maybe Trump ’ s hands feel small so they aren ’ t reporting it .
( Or they ’ re trying to find a way to make it look like he collected more . )
I read somewhere that they are spending 10 million a week on ( deceptive ) facebook ads .
Maybe that ’ s one place where the money has gone .
But it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ starting to vote in some places .
This makes no sense .
This New York Times article mentioned above delves deeply into the current thinking in the two campaigns .
Whether it ’ s real or spin in always hard to know but It ’ s interesting nonetheless .
The Trump campaign has completely given up on the popular vote , which makes sense since he is highly unlikely to win it .
So they are gaming out otheir strategy based upon winning the electoral college without it , which it really should @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Not that campaigns didn ’ t always game out the electoral college and aim for that victory , but to hope for an inside straight like 2000 and 2016 is new .
The GOP has clearly settled comfortably into the idea that they can rule this country from their cramped , racist , white minority and that ’ s just fine .
The undemocratic chickens in our system have come home to roost .

Why are they pinching pennies?
Money concerns are very real for President Trump’s campaign — an unusual predicament for a sitting president, and one that worries veteran Republican operatives, with Trump so far behind in swing states as the race climaxes.
Why it matters: The campaign’s view is that Trump will get his message out, and he depends less on paid media than normal politicians. But the number of states Trump has to worry about has actually grown, and Joe Biden’s massive August fundraising haul has given his campaign a lift as early voting begins.
The New York Times leads today’s paper with a big Labor Day scene-setter with several intriguing references to money problems for Trump:“The light television spending and advertising blackouts in some key states have mystified allies,” The Times reports.
Trump is expected to increase television spending next week, but several Republicans said that Bill Stepien, Mr. Trump’s campaign manager since July, was taking a cautious approach after the former leadership spent huge sums on television and digital ads earlier this year, to no discernible effect.”
Last Monday, AP’s Brian Slodysko reported that the Trump campaign had pulled most TV ads over the previous week, ceding the airwaves to Biden, who was outspending Trump by more than 10 to 1.
Trump and the Republicans have raised a boatload of money. What have they spent it on? Is it all one big grift? (Don’t answer that …)
That’s as of July. I don’t think they’ve reported their haul for August. The Biden campaign raised a record shattering 365 million so maybe Trump’s hands feel small so they aren’t reporting it. (Or they’re trying to find a way to make it look like he collected more.)
I read somewhere that they are spending 10 million a week on (deceptive) facebook ads. Maybe that’s one place where the money has gone. But it’s September. People are already starting to vote in some places. This makes no sense.
This New York Times article mentioned above delves deeply into the current thinking in the two campaigns. Whether it’s real or spin in always hard to know but It’s interesting nonetheless. The Trump campaign has completely given up on the popular vote, which makes sense since he is highly unlikely to win it. So they are gaming out otheir strategy based upon winning the electoral college without it, which it really should be emphasized is a new thing. Not that campaigns didn’t always game out the electoral college and aim for that victory, but to hope for an inside straight like 2000 and 2016 is new. The GOP has clearly settled comfortably into the idea that they can rule this country from their cramped, racist , white minority and that’s just fine.
The undemocratic chickens in our system have come home to roost.
Published with permission of Hullabaloo


crooksandliars--2020-09-07--Quote Of The Day: Armed Militias Target BLM Protests

Responding to the belief of armed right-wing militia that `` the police are n't protecting businesses , '' a professor @ @ @ @ @ the day : '' It 's a long-held fantasy of right-wing militia groups , '' @ @ @ @ @ computer science professor at Elon University in North Carolina who tracks online extremism .
`` @ @ @ @ @ in which they can put their gun collections to use by showing up , unbidden @ @ @ @ @ that in many cases are n't theirs and do n't want that service .
`` @ @ @ @ @ militias and other right-wing gun enthusiasts is really at a fever pitch this whole summer @ @ @ @ @ `` Now , we 're seeing that come to bear in real life . ''

Responding to the belief of armed right-wing militia that "the police aren't protecting businesses," a professor has today's quote of the day:
"It's a long-held fantasy of right-wing militia groups," said Megan Squire, a computer science professor at Elon University in North Carolina who tracks online extremism. "They are inventing a scenario in which they can put their gun collections to use by showing up, unbidden, to 'protect' businesses that in many cases aren't theirs and don't want that service.
"The online rhetoric among armed militias and other right-wing gun enthusiasts is really at a fever pitch this whole summer," Squire said. "Now, we're seeing that come to bear in real life."