REPUBLICANS IN DISARRAY

While things continue to look bad for Donald Trump ’ s reelection , if he even makes it that far , it appears things are going even worse for Senate Republicans looking to hold onto their slim majority .
Out of the top ten Senators with the highest disapproval rating , eight of them are Republicans , according to a recent poll by Morning Consult .
Of those eight , five are up for reelection in 2020 .
Republicans will be defending 23 out of the 35 Senate seats up for bids in November .
Not surprisingly , Maine Senator @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 52 % disapproval rating .
After repeatedly pretending that she ’ s not a political hack but then following up on her furrowed brows by voting in line with Trump , it ’ s no surprise her approval rating is ten points underwater .
On Thursday she publicly stated that she ’ s considering voting to present witnesses and documents during Trump ’ s impeachment trial , but based on her history such statements are worth very little .
Number seven on the list , with a disapproval rating of 40 % , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to overtake Collins for the “ top ” spot in the poll .
When CNN reporter Manu Raju asked McSally on Thursday if she thought the Senate should consider new evidence as part of the impeachment trial , she doubled down on her blind loyalty to Trump stating , “ You ’ re a liberal hack , I ’ m not talking to you.
” Clearly caught off guard by McSally ’ s response , Raju proceeded to ask again if she would comment on it .
She again stated , “ You @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a chance to take back her statement on Fox News later that night , McSally tripled down on it instead , and her campaign actually used her statement in a fundraising effort .
For a Senator facing a tough reelection , such Trumpian behaviors are likely to infuriate independents and moderate voters .
With her Democratic opponent and former astronaut Mark Kelly currently beating her in several polls , it seems clear that vulnerable Republicans believe their only path to reelection is to do everything to keep Trump on their side .
We @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out in fewer than ten months .

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While things continue to look bad for Donald Trump’s reelection, if he even makes it that far, it appears things are going even worse for Senate Republicans looking to hold onto their slim majority. Out of the top ten Senators with the highest disapproval rating, eight of them are Republicans, according to a recent poll by Morning Consult. Of those eight, five are up for reelection in 2020. Republicans will be defending 23 out of the 35 Senate seats up for bids in November.
Not surprisingly, Maine Senator Susan Collins tops the list with a 52% disapproval rating. After repeatedly pretending that she’s not a political hack but then following up on her furrowed brows by voting in line with Trump, it’s no surprise her approval rating is ten points underwater. On Thursday she publicly stated that she’s considering voting to present witnesses and documents during Trump’s impeachment trial, but based on her history such statements are worth very little.
Number seven on the list, with a disapproval rating of 40%, Arizona Senator Martha McSally is apparently looking to overtake Collins for the “top” spot in the poll. When CNN reporter Manu Raju asked McSally on Thursday if she thought the Senate should consider new evidence as part of the impeachment trial, she doubled down on her blind loyalty to Trump stating, “You’re a liberal hack, I’m not talking to you.” Clearly caught off guard by McSally’s response, Raju proceeded to ask again if she would comment on it. She again stated, “You’re a liberal hack.”
Given a chance to take back her statement on Fox News later that night, McSally tripled down on it instead, and her campaign actually used her statement in a fundraising effort. For a Senator facing a tough reelection, such Trumpian behaviors are likely to infuriate independents and moderate voters. With her Democratic opponent and former astronaut Mark Kelly currently beating her in several polls, it seems clear that vulnerable Republicans believe their only path to reelection is to do everything to keep Trump on their side. We’ll see how that strategy plays out in fewer than ten months.
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palmerreport--2020-01-18--Nancy Pelosi still holds all the impeachment cards

The Republican Senate is still trying to figure out how to handle Donald Trump ’ s impeachment trial .
At least some Republican Senators are clearly concerned that if they don ’ t call any witnesses and run a sham trial , voters will punish them for it when they ’ re up for reelection .
With all the posturing going on , it ’ s still far from clear whether there will in fact be witnesses .
Here ’ s the thing , though .
It may not even matter .
Let ’ s say that the Republican Senators @ @ @ @ @ @ @ own backsides by calling witnesses like Lev Parnas and John Bolton to testify at the trial , even if their testimony does end up hurting Donald Trump .
That would be the most straightforward and ideal outcome .
But if they don ’ t call any witnesses , Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi still holds all the cards .
Pelosi only brought two articles of impeachment when she could have easily brought more .
If she thinks the Senate trial is being handled in a dishonest manner , she can open new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ impeachment , and have people like Bolton and Parnas publicly testify during those hearings .
If she wants to , she can even hold those hearings at the same time the sham Senate trial is going on .
Of course we don ’ t know what Nancy Pelosi will do with any of this .
But that ’ s the point , because it means Republican Senators don ’ t know what she ’ s going to do either .
Not only are they being forced to blindly guess whether they ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , they ’ re also being forced to guess what Pelosi will do in response to whatever path they commit themselves to .
Pelosi still has to figure out how to play her cards right – but she ’ s the only one holding any cards .

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The Republican Senate is still trying to figure out how to handle Donald Trump’s impeachment trial. At least some Republican Senators are clearly concerned that if they don’t call any witnesses and run a sham trial, voters will punish them for it when they’re up for reelection. With all the posturing going on, it’s still far from clear whether there will in fact be witnesses.
Here’s the thing, though. It may not even matter. Let’s say that the Republican Senators decide they do need to cover their own backsides by calling witnesses like Lev Parnas and John Bolton to testify at the trial, even if their testimony does end up hurting Donald Trump. That would be the most straightforward and ideal outcome. But if they don’t call any witnesses, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi still holds all the cards.
Pelosi only brought two articles of impeachment when she could have easily brought more. If she thinks the Senate trial is being handled in a dishonest manner, she can open new House impeachment hearings on additional articles of impeachment, and have people like Bolton and Parnas publicly testify during those hearings. If she wants to, she can even hold those hearings at the same time the sham Senate trial is going on.
Of course we don’t know what Nancy Pelosi will do with any of this. But that’s the point, because it means Republican Senators don’t know what she’s going to do either. Not only are they being forced to blindly guess whether they’re better off calling or not calling witnesses, they’re also being forced to guess what Pelosi will do in response to whatever path they commit themselves to. Pelosi still has to figure out how to play her cards right – but she’s the only one holding any cards.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-19--Yet another of Donald Trump’s goons just went down in flames

Longtime Republican strategist and current “ Never Trumper ” Rick Wilson released the new book “ Running Against the Devil : A Plot to Save America from Trump – and Democrats from Themselves ” this week .
While the lessons laid out in this book could be used by the DNC and Democratic candidates in an effort to defeat Trump in the November elections , it is actually Wilson ’ s previous book , “ Everything Trump Touches Dies , ” better known on social media as # ETTD , that might be an even more important lesson for America @ @ @ @ @ @ @ randomly name someone in Trump ’ s orbit over the past few years and have a high level of confidence that this individual is doing much worse than they were before they became tangled up with Trump .
From Paul Manafort to Roger Stone to Michael Cohen et al , the list goes on and on .
And it doesn ’ t even have to be someone currently in prison .
Previous Trump confidants such as Jeff Sessions , Steve Bannon , and Reince Priebus have much less political equity today than they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump .
During the 2016 Presidential Republican primaries , most people scoffed at Trump ’ s chances at becoming the Republican nominee .
To be fair , very few people were aware at that time of Russia ’ s plan to subvert American democracy and help assist Trump in illegitimately obtaining the highest office in the land .
The very first member of Congress to publicly announce his support for Trump was New York Congressman Chris Collins .
Without fail , Wilson ’ s # ETTD foretelling came true in regards to Collins @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to 26 months in prison for his part in an insider trading deal .
While one might claim this had nothing to do with his involvement with supporting Trump , that person would be incorrect .
There appears to be some unknown energy – call it greed , complacency , or a lack of morals – that attracts the worst of the worst to Trump .
As Trump ’ s impeachment trial in the Senate is carried out , everyone in his orbit should be very afraid , because everything Trump touches dies @

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Longtime Republican strategist and current “Never Trumper” Rick Wilson released the new book “Running Against the Devil: A Plot to Save America from Trump – and Democrats from Themselves” this week. While the lessons laid out in this book could be used by the DNC and Democratic candidates in an effort to defeat Trump in the November elections, it is actually Wilson’s previous book, “Everything Trump Touches Dies,” better known on social media as #ETTD, that might be an even more important lesson for America.
It has become so easy to randomly name someone in Trump’s orbit over the past few years and have a high level of confidence that this individual is doing much worse than they were before they became tangled up with Trump. From Paul Manafort to Roger Stone to Michael Cohen et al, the list goes on and on. And it doesn’t even have to be someone currently in prison. Previous Trump confidants such as Jeff Sessions, Steve Bannon, and Reince Priebus have much less political equity today than they had prior to selling their souls to Trump.
During the 2016 Presidential Republican primaries, most people scoffed at Trump’s chances at becoming the Republican nominee. To be fair, very few people were aware at that time of Russia’s plan to subvert American democracy and help assist Trump in illegitimately obtaining the highest office in the land. The very first member of Congress to publicly announce his support for Trump was New York Congressman Chris Collins. Without fail, Wilson’s #ETTD foretelling came true in regards to Collins.
On Friday, Collins was sentenced to 26 months in prison for his part in an insider trading deal. While one might claim this had nothing to do with his involvement with supporting Trump, that person would be incorrect. There appears to be some unknown energy – call it greed, complacency, or a lack of morals – that attracts the worst of the worst to Trump. As Trump’s impeachment trial in the Senate is carried out, everyone in his orbit should be very afraid, because everything Trump touches dies.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-19--Donald Trump suddenly has a Rex Tillerson problem

Most people may have a hard time placing the name Rex Tillerson – the former Exxon CEO who was Secretary of State for just over a year despite being grossly unqualified and then was unceremoniously fired via Twitter by Donald Trump , but his alleged description of Trump as a “ fucking moron ” still holds up pretty well .
At the time we first heard about it , we thought if the words came up it likely had something to do with Trump ’ s complete cluelessness regarding anything to do with diplomacy , or his astounding ignorance when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we have a bit more understanding into why Tillerson spoke , and it ’ s a whole lot worse in context .
While meeting in The Tank , the secure vault where the president meets with the Joint Chiefs to discuss highly classified intel , Trump had yet another meltdown about the Iran deal in front of the assembled high ranking generals .
According to the upcoming book A Very Stable Genius by Washington Post reporters Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig , Trump complained about not making enough money off the military , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ called the generals a bunch of dopes and babies .
Somehow , the fact that it ’ s those words makes it easy to believe that Trump , well known for his name-calling , really did say it .
The room quickly went into stunned silence in overall disbelief at Trump ’ s wrath – namely his admonishment , “ I wouldn ’ t go to war with you people.
” The first one to break the ice was Tillerson with his infamous reply – speaking up on behalf of the servicemen that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that stands out about this episode isn ’ t so much that it happened in private – as Trump ’ s tantrums public and private have been well-documented , but the fact that it happened so early in his administration – with Gary Cohn and James Mattis both present for the meeting .
We tend to think of Donald Trump as mentally deteriorating in real time particularly following his impeachment , but this suggests that his worst impulses were there from early on in his term .
Now that aides and staffers have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it ’ s getting that much more difficult to hide how dangerously incompetent Trump was when he first stepped into the Oval Office .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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Most people may have a hard time placing the name Rex Tillerson – the former Exxon CEO who was Secretary of State for just over a year despite being grossly unqualified and then was unceremoniously fired via Twitter by Donald Trump, but his alleged description of Trump as a “fucking moron” still holds up pretty well. At the time we first heard about it, we thought if the words came up it likely had something to do with Trump’s complete cluelessness regarding anything to do with diplomacy, or his astounding ignorance when it comes to foreign relations. Now we have a bit more understanding into why Tillerson spoke, and it’s a whole lot worse in context.
While meeting in The Tank, the secure vault where the president meets with the Joint Chiefs to discuss highly classified intel, Trump had yet another meltdown about the Iran deal in front of the assembled high ranking generals. According to the upcoming book A Very Stable Genius by Washington Post reporters Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig, Trump complained about not making enough money off the military, and flew into a rage where he called the generals a bunch of dopes and babies. Somehow, the fact that it’s those words makes it easy to believe that Trump, well known for his name-calling, really did say it.
The room quickly went into stunned silence in overall disbelief at Trump’s wrath – namely his admonishment, “I wouldn’t go to war with you people.” The first one to break the ice was Tillerson with his infamous reply – speaking up on behalf of the servicemen that Trump insulted. Unfortunately, the thing that stands out about this episode isn’t so much that it happened in private – as Trump’s tantrums public and private have been well-documented, but the fact that it happened so early in his administration – with Gary Cohn and James Mattis both present for the meeting.
We tend to think of Donald Trump as mentally deteriorating in real time particularly following his impeachment, but this suggests that his worst impulses were there from early on in his term. Now that aides and staffers have been rapidly fleeing the sinking ship, it’s getting that much more difficult to hide how dangerously incompetent Trump was when he first stepped into the Oval Office.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-19--Donald Trump posts utterly bizarre tweet, deletes it

Over the past few weeks , Donald Trump ’ s Twitter habits have somehow found a way to get even stranger .
He ’ s never been a competent speller , but now he ’ s forgetting how to spell words that he used to know how to spell correctly .
He ’ s also begun tweeting bizarre fragments such as “ her her ” and “ shoild ” and “ nade s ” that shouldn ’ t even be possible to get past autocorrect .
But now he ’ s gone and done something even weirder .
As Donald @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more incompetent , his handlers have had to delete and replace his tweets more frequently .
Perhaps that explains why , after Trump tweeted a particularly bizarre tweet this evening – ending with “ ….BUT THE BEST IS YET TO COME !
” – it was then deleted for no apparent reason .
Ten minutes later the exact same thread was tweeted again , also without explanation .
So what ’ s going on ?
Nothing competent , that ’ s for sure .
The responses to Trump ’ s “ THE BEST @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t exactly kind – particularly after the second time he tweeted it .
Responses were along the lines of “ Yes , your removal from office ” and “ You being imprisoned will be the best.
” This comes barely an hour after Donald Trump had a complete meltdown on Twitter about how stupid it would be for New York City to build a sea wall .
Wait , isn ’ t Trump the guy who loves walls ?
Apparently not , as he tried to taunt New Yorkers by telling them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ just have to get your mops & buckets ready !
” Of course when Trump goes to prison , he ’ ll probably be the one having to use a mop and bucket all day .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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Over the past few weeks, Donald Trump’s Twitter habits have somehow found a way to get even stranger. He’s never been a competent speller, but now he’s forgetting how to spell words that he used to know how to spell correctly. He’s also begun tweeting bizarre fragments such as “her her” and “shoild” and “nade s” that shouldn’t even be possible to get past autocorrect. But now he’s gone and done something even weirder.
As Donald Trump’s tweeting has gotten even more incompetent, his handlers have had to delete and replace his tweets more frequently. Perhaps that explains why, after Trump tweeted a particularly bizarre tweet this evening – ending with “….BUT THE BEST IS YET TO COME!” – it was then deleted for no apparent reason. Ten minutes later the exact same thread was tweeted again, also without explanation.
So what’s going on? Nothing competent, that’s for sure. The responses to Trump’s “THE BEST IS YET TO COME” outburst weren’t exactly kind – particularly after the second time he tweeted it. Responses were along the lines of “Yes, your removal from office” and “You being imprisoned will be the best.”
This comes barely an hour after Donald Trump had a complete meltdown on Twitter about how stupid it would be for New York City to build a sea wall. Wait, isn’t Trump the guy who loves walls? Apparently not, as he tried to taunt New Yorkers by telling them, “Sorry, you’ll just have to get your mops & buckets ready!” Of course when Trump goes to prison, he’ll probably be the one having to use a mop and bucket all day.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-19--Here comes the freak show

Here comes the freak show

Donald J. Trump , IMPOTUS the Third , is about to be tried in the Senate on two articles of impeachment .
On Friday , he named members of his defense team , including Pat Cipollone and Kenneth Starr , as well as Jay Sekulow .
One person whose role on the team is not clear is Alan “ Dearth of Wits ” Dershowitz .
He tweeted on Friday about his role : STATEMENT REGARDING PROFESSOR DERSHOWITZ ’ S ROLE IN THE SENATE TRIAL – Professor Dershowitz will present oral arguments at the Senate trial to address the constitutional arguments @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Dershowitz is non partisan when it comes to the constitution—he opposed the impeachment of President Bill Clinton and voted for Hillary Clinton— he believes the issues at stake go to the heart of our enduring Constitution .
He is participating in this impeachment trial to defend the integrity of the Constitution and to prevent the creation of a dangerous constitutional precedent .
First , it should be noted that Dershowitz is not “ nonpartisan ” when it comes to the Constitution .
Rather , he has never found an opportunity to inflate his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ did not take .
He will defend any position , so long as he is on television and relevant .
Second , his assertion that abuse of power is not something the founding fathers believed should be impeachable is just not right .
Finally , his insistence that high crimes and misdemeanors requires some actual crime is preposterous .
In Federalist No .
65 , Alexander Hamilton wrote : “ The subjects of its jurisdiction are those offenses which proceed from the misconduct of public men , or , in other words , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ public trust .
They are of a nature which may with peculiar propriety be denominated POLITICAL , as they relate chiefly to injuries done immediately to the society itself.
” Tuesday will be interesting , as it is not clear by what authority Dershowitz will appear on the Senate floor to describe his deep concerns .
And the public should know better than accepting the argument that Dershowitz , Jonathan Turley , and other legal wackos are impartial just because they ’ ve voted for Democrats in the past .
Opportunity to be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reward .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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Donald J. Trump, IMPOTUS the Third, is about to be tried in the Senate on two articles of impeachment. On Friday, he named members of his defense team, including Pat Cipollone and Kenneth Starr, as well as Jay Sekulow. One person whose role on the team is not clear is Alan “Dearth of Wits” Dershowitz. He tweeted on Friday about his role:
STATEMENT REGARDING PROFESSOR DERSHOWITZ’S ROLE IN THE SENATE TRIAL – Professor Dershowitz will present oral arguments at the Senate trial to address the constitutional arguments against impeachment and removal. While Professor Dershowitz is non partisan when it comes to the constitution—he opposed the impeachment of President Bill Clinton and voted for Hillary Clinton— he believes the issues at stake go to the heart of our enduring Constitution. He is participating in this impeachment trial to defend the integrity of the Constitution and to prevent the creation of a dangerous constitutional precedent.
First, it should be noted that Dershowitz is not “nonpartisan” when it comes to the Constitution. Rather, he has never found an opportunity to inflate his position in the legal world that he did not take. He will defend any position, so long as he is on television and relevant. Second, his assertion that abuse of power is not something the founding fathers believed should be impeachable is just not right. Finally, his insistence that high crimes and misdemeanors requires some actual crime is preposterous.
In Federalist No. 65, Alexander Hamilton wrote: “The subjects of its jurisdiction are those offenses which proceed from the misconduct of public men, or, in other words, from the abuse or violation of some public trust. They are of a nature which may with peculiar propriety be denominated POLITICAL, as they relate chiefly to injuries done immediately to the society itself.”
Tuesday will be interesting, as it is not clear by what authority Dershowitz will appear on the Senate floor to describe his deep concerns. And the public should know better than accepting the argument that Dershowitz, Jonathan Turley, and other legal wackos are impartial just because they’ve voted for Democrats in the past. Opportunity to be in the spotlight can be its own reward.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-19--Donald Trump has complete meltdown as he flees New York City

If there ’ s one thing Donald Trump wants you to know about him , it ’ s that he thinks building a wall on the southern border will somehow make us all safer , even though there isn ’ t one knowledgeable person who agrees with him .
Of course the border wall has always been about stirring up racist sentiment and funneling money into his own pocket , and Trump reminded us of that when he forcefully came out against a different kind of wall today .
Donald Trump has decided to flee New York in favor of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ apparently because he ’ s under the mistaken impression that doing so will prevent New York State from bringing criminal charges against him once he ’ s gone from office .
Now he ’ s trying to taunt New Yorkers with this scientifically invalid and completely incoherent tweet : A massive 200 Billion Dollar Sea Wall , built around New York to protect it from rare storms , is a costly , foolish & environmentally unfriendly idea that , when needed , probably won ’ t work anyway .
It will also look @ @ @ @ @ @ @ just have to get your mops & buckets ready !
What kind of deranged infantile clown tweets this kind of garbage ?
This guy is supposed to be the President of the United States .
Yet he clearly hates everyone in the United States who believes in science , or believes in engineering , or lives in any blue state , or lives in New York City in particular .
The kicker is that once Trump is eventually arrested by New York State , he ’ ll likely be held at Rikers Island @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trial .
Maybe he should be rooting for that sea wall after all .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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If there’s one thing Donald Trump wants you to know about him, it’s that he thinks building a wall on the southern border will somehow make us all safer, even though there isn’t one knowledgeable person who agrees with him. Of course the border wall has always been about stirring up racist sentiment and funneling money into his own pocket, and Trump reminded us of that when he forcefully came out against a different kind of wall today.
Donald Trump has decided to flee New York in favor of becoming an official resident of Florida, apparently because he’s under the mistaken impression that doing so will prevent New York State from bringing criminal charges against him once he’s gone from office. Now he’s trying to taunt New Yorkers with this scientifically invalid and completely incoherent tweet:
A massive 200 Billion Dollar Sea Wall, built around New York to protect it from rare storms, is a costly, foolish & environmentally unfriendly idea that, when needed, probably won’t work anyway. It will also look terrible. Sorry, you’ll just have to get your mops & buckets ready!
What kind of deranged infantile clown tweets this kind of garbage? This guy is supposed to be the President of the United States. Yet he clearly hates everyone in the United States who believes in science, or believes in engineering, or lives in any blue state, or lives in New York City in particular. The kicker is that once Trump is eventually arrested by New York State, he’ll likely be held at Rikers Island in New York City while he awaits trial. Maybe he should be rooting for that sea wall after all.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-19--Donald Trump is firing blanks in the wrong direction

Over the past week Donald Trump hasn ’ t spent much time attacking Democratic frontrunner Joe Biden , which is weird considering Trump was recently so obsessed with trying to destroy Biden , he got himself impeached over it .
Nor has Trump spent much time attacking Elizabeth Warren or Bernie Sanders lately , even though they ’ re the only two other candidates with strong poll numbers .
Instead , Trump has spent the week obsessively attacking two Democratic candidates who aren ’ t even in contention .
In the hours after this past week ’ s Democratic primary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with attacking Tom Steyer , a candidate who ’ s polling at two percent .
Now Trump is obsessively attacking Mike Bloomberg , a candidate who didn ’ t even qualify for the debate .
Not only have Trump ’ s attacks on these two guys been ineffective , he wouldn ’ t gain anything even if his attacks were effective , because the Democrats are highly unlikely to make either of these two guys their nominee .
So what ’ s he doing ?
There are two schools of thought .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been spending a ton of money on anti-Trump television ads since before he was even in the race , and because Michael Bloomberg is promising to continue spending a ton of money on anti-Trump ads even if someone else is the nominee , Trump is afraid these two guys are going to use their money to bury him .
There may be something to this .
But this presumes that Trump has a strategy , when most of his erratic actions these days reveal that he has no strategy of any kind .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ because Steyer and Bloomberg are actual billionaires , and Donald Trump is a deeply indebted fake billionaire , he ’ s lashing out at them out of pure insecurity and jealousy .
Imagine spending your entire life extravagantly spending other people ’ s money in the hope of convincing the public you ’ re wealthy when you ’ re actually broke , and then two guys who are actually wealthy decide to come directly at you .
In any case , Bloomberg and Steyer are taking some heat off the viable Democratic candidates @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thing .
Trump is wasting his time and ammo on unproductive nonsense .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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Over the past week Donald Trump hasn’t spent much time attacking Democratic frontrunner Joe Biden, which is weird considering Trump was recently so obsessed with trying to destroy Biden, he got himself impeached over it. Nor has Trump spent much time attacking Elizabeth Warren or Bernie Sanders lately, even though they’re the only two other candidates with strong poll numbers. Instead, Trump has spent the week obsessively attacking two Democratic candidates who aren’t even in contention.
In the hours after this past week’s Democratic primary debate, Donald Trump was curiously obsessed with attacking Tom Steyer, a candidate who’s polling at two percent. Now Trump is obsessively attacking Mike Bloomberg, a candidate who didn’t even qualify for the debate. Not only have Trump’s attacks on these two guys been ineffective, he wouldn’t gain anything even if his attacks were effective, because the Democrats are highly unlikely to make either of these two guys their nominee. So what’s he doing?
There are two schools of thought. The first is that because Tom Steyer has been spending a ton of money on anti-Trump television ads since before he was even in the race, and because Michael Bloomberg is promising to continue spending a ton of money on anti-Trump ads even if someone else is the nominee, Trump is afraid these two guys are going to use their money to bury him. There may be something to this. But this presumes that Trump has a strategy, when most of his erratic actions these days reveal that he has no strategy of any kind.
The other school of thought is that because Steyer and Bloomberg are actual billionaires, and Donald Trump is a deeply indebted fake billionaire, he’s lashing out at them out of pure insecurity and jealousy. Imagine spending your entire life extravagantly spending other people’s money in the hope of convincing the public you’re wealthy when you’re actually broke, and then two guys who are actually wealthy decide to come directly at you. In any case, Bloomberg and Steyer are taking some heat off the viable Democratic candidates, which has to be a good thing. Trump is wasting his time and ammo on unproductive nonsense.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-19--Donald Trump’s Robert Hyde mess just keeps getting uglier for him

Before the Republican Kremlin Klown Show begins in earnest on Tuesday , we think it ’ s time for a little levity .
Sure , lawyers Dershowitz and Starr are going to argue that everything in the USA is unconstitutional except the lifetime dictatorship of Donald Trump , but hey , let ’ s talk instead about another pair of brilliant Trump worshippers , Robert Hyde and Anthony de Caluwe .
One man is a walking forlorn hope of a galoot in his delusional attempt to run for Congress ; the other is a citizen of the Netherlands who randomly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Trump Legitimate Businessman ’ s Club .
But both of them dismiss their text messages about tracking the US Ambassador to Ukraine as simple drunken banter .
Drunken banter that went on for days .
For .
Days .
They are now seeming to coordinate their story as – to quote Melania – “ boy talk.
” And because boys will be boys , even though one of them professes to be a Marine , and we ’ re pretty sure you have to be an adult to do that , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mischief .
After all , who among us hasn ’ t drunkenly stalked the whereabouts of an American ambassador , magically knowing her cell phone and computer status as if Russia were listening ?
Additionally , to distract from the enraging McConnell-on-Ice absurdities we ’ re going to have to deal with on Tuesday , it was just announced that the new uniforms for Trump ’ s Space Force are out .
We think Hyde and de Caluwe should be the first to volunteer .
These green camo uniforms , for some reason @ @ @ @ @ @ @ might wear when he ’ s out hunting endangered animals in the woods .
Jokes about the Forest Moon of Endor aside , the uniforms are emblematic of the entire Trump administration .
Imagine passing one of these kitted-out service members in an airport .
You think you ’ re thanking a National Guard or Army person for their service when you happen to read the insignia that says Space Force on their chest .
Mel Brooks couldn ’ t make this more Trumpian if he tried .
After wondering where in space @ @ @ @ @ @ @ green camo , the next thing you got ta ask is what in the hell are they protecting ?
We strongly suspect the only space they ’ re protecting right now is the space between Trump ’ s ears because surely Mattis , Tillerson et al can attest to that being a vacuum .
After all , why should Trump know about Pearl Harbor when that day is just one of 365 days a year of infamy in this administration ?
Trump ’ s Space Force uniform roll out this weekend was the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ put us through .
We ’ ve got way more ahead of us and we know it ’ s hard , but it ’ s important to keep some semblance of a sense of humor .
It ’ s good medicine .
Plus , it never hurts to remember that in space , no one can hear you laugh .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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Before the Republican Kremlin Klown Show begins in earnest on Tuesday, we think it’s time for a little levity. Sure, lawyers Dershowitz and Starr are going to argue that everything in the USA is unconstitutional except the lifetime dictatorship of Donald Trump, but hey, let’s talk instead about another pair of brilliant Trump worshippers, Robert Hyde and Anthony de Caluwe. One man is a walking forlorn hope of a galoot in his delusional attempt to run for Congress; the other is a citizen of the Netherlands who randomly may or may not be a member of the Trump Legitimate Businessman’s Club. But both of them dismiss their text messages about tracking the US Ambassador to Ukraine as simple drunken banter. Drunken banter that went on for days. For. Days.
They are now seeming to coordinate their story as – to quote Melania – “boy talk.” And because boys will be boys, even though one of them professes to be a Marine, and we’re pretty sure you have to be an adult to do that, they ask that we understand their rascally mischief. After all, who among us hasn’t drunkenly stalked the whereabouts of an American ambassador, magically knowing her cell phone and computer status as if Russia were listening?
Additionally, to distract from the enraging McConnell-on-Ice absurdities we’re going to have to deal with on Tuesday, it was just announced that the new uniforms for Trump’s Space Force are out. We think Hyde and de Caluwe should be the first to volunteer. These green camo uniforms, for some reason, look exactly like what Don Jr. might wear when he’s out hunting endangered animals in the woods. Jokes about the Forest Moon of Endor aside, the uniforms are emblematic of the entire Trump administration. Imagine passing one of these kitted-out service members in an airport. You think you’re thanking a National Guard or Army person for their service when you happen to read the insignia that says Space Force on their chest. Mel Brooks couldn’t make this more Trumpian if he tried.
After wondering where in space these guys are working that they need green camo, the next thing you gotta ask is what in the hell are they protecting? We strongly suspect the only space they’re protecting right now is the space between Trump’s ears because surely Mattis, Tillerson et al can attest to that being a vacuum. After all, why should Trump know about Pearl Harbor when that day is just one of 365 days a year of infamy in this administration?
Trump’s Space Force uniform roll out this weekend was the perfect emblem of all Trump’s put us through. We’ve got way more ahead of us and we know it’s hard, but it’s important to keep some semblance of a sense of humor. It’s good medicine. Plus, it never hurts to remember that in space, no one can hear you laugh.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-19--Told you that one wasn’t going to work

Told you that one wasn’t going to work

Last week Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell signed onto an effort to dismiss the impeachment charges against Donald Trump , instead of having a trial .
This struck fear in a lot of observers , largely because the media portrayed this as something that might actually succeed .
Now even Trump ’ s own team is publicly admitting today that the effort to dismiss the charges is dead on arrival .
If you ’ ve been reading Palmer Report , this doesn ’ t come as a surprise to you , because McConnell never had the votes to pull this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a moment to dissect what McConnell was really doing here , because it ’ ll help us to better understand his antics and strategy going forward .
This all started when certain Republican Senators started publicly talking about wanting a legitimate impeachment trial , because they were worried that voters might take it out on them if they ’ re seen as giving Trump a sham trial .
This made Trump fear that an impeachment trial could damage him ( whether he was ultimately removed or not ) , so he announced on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to simply dismiss the charges with no trial .
Mitch McConnell then jumped on board with this idea , because it goaded the media into spending a few days talking about the ( imaginary ) possibility of a dismissal , instead of talking about the ( real ) possibility of Republican Senators forcing McConnell to call witnesses .
McConnell frequently announces his political fantasies as if he were going to be able to make them happen .
He always pretends he has the votes , especially when he doesn ’ t have the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t have the votes for a dismissal .
It was a head fake .
It ’ s the latest reminder that you can safely dismiss nearly all of what Mitch McConnell is saying – even when the media is treating his words as if they were fact .
Instead it ’ s better to pay attention to the hints that McConnell ’ s Republican Senators are publicly dropping about what they ’ re going to push McConnell into doing .
He doesn ’ t have a magic wand , and he frequently doesn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the things he ’ s vowing to do .
At a time when Republican Senators were publicly talking about calling witnesses against Donald Trump at the trial , there obviously weren ’ t the votes to magically dismiss the charges without a trial .
Let ’ s keep that in mind for next time McConnell threatens to do something that ’ s impossible .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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Last week Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell signed onto an effort to dismiss the impeachment charges against Donald Trump, instead of having a trial. This struck fear in a lot of observers, largely because the media portrayed this as something that might actually succeed. Now even Trump’s own team is publicly admitting today that the effort to dismiss the charges is dead on arrival. If you’ve been reading Palmer Report, this doesn’t come as a surprise to you, because McConnell never had the votes to pull this off. In fact we should take a moment to dissect what McConnell was really doing here, because it’ll help us to better understand his antics and strategy going forward.
This all started when certain Republican Senators started publicly talking about wanting a legitimate impeachment trial, because they were worried that voters might take it out on them if they’re seen as giving Trump a sham trial. This made Trump fear that an impeachment trial could damage him (whether he was ultimately removed or not), so he announced on Twitter that he wanted the Republican Senate to simply dismiss the charges with no trial.
Mitch McConnell then jumped on board with this idea, because it goaded the media into spending a few days talking about the (imaginary) possibility of a dismissal, instead of talking about the (real) possibility of Republican Senators forcing McConnell to call witnesses. McConnell frequently announces his political fantasies as if he were going to be able to make them happen. He always pretends he has the votes, especially when he doesn’t have the votes. He knew he didn’t have the votes for a dismissal. It was a head fake.
It’s the latest reminder that you can safely dismiss nearly all of what Mitch McConnell is saying – even when the media is treating his words as if they were fact. Instead it’s better to pay attention to the hints that McConnell’s Republican Senators are publicly dropping about what they’re going to push McConnell into doing. He doesn’t have a magic wand, and he frequently doesn’t have the votes to do the things he’s vowing to do. At a time when Republican Senators were publicly talking about calling witnesses against Donald Trump at the trial, there obviously weren’t the votes to magically dismiss the charges without a trial. Let’s keep that in mind for next time McConnell threatens to do something that’s impossible.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-19--Donald Trump is rapidly taking the GOP down with him

How unpopular are Republicans right now ?
Something like one third of likely voters have a favorable opinion of the GOP , with nearly 60 % of voters not so content with its leadership or lack thereof .
Despite their poor approval ratings , the party continues to embrace ideas that are even less popular , and often downright dangerous .
Since they can ’ t win elections by being honest about their own platform , they stoop to tactics like voter suppression to move the needle , since even taking up wedge issues like abortion and gun control seem @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Not content enough with lying and misrepresenting the Democratic Party ’ s entire platform , the trend for Republicans lately has been to come up with a false narrative .
The party has become too radical , they claim , enough that traditional , long-time Democrats are leaving and voting Republican instead .
They tried this throughout the 2018 midterms , with the hashtag # walkaway on Twitter and newspaper op-eds from former Democrats endorsing Republicans , even culminating in a # walkaway parade on Washington for people to express their disgust @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they like to blame for incivility in politics .
They embarrassed themselves when only around 50 people showed up to the event .
Not to be outdone , the pro-GOP American Action Network ran a series of television ads decrying Rep. Xochitl Torres Small of New Mexico .
Another ad denounces Anthony Brindisi ( D-NY ) , and others lash out against Reps. Matt Cartwright ( D-PA ) , Abby Finkenauer ( D-IA ) , Jared Golden ( D-ME ) , Andy Kim ( D-NJ ) , Susie Lee ( D-NV ) , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ McAdams ( D-UT ) , Max Rose ( D-NY ) , and Abigail Spanberger ( D-VA ) .
The problem ?
Each ad features the same woman , ‘ Stacy , ’ claiming to be a constituent of theirs .
In each ad , Stacy condemns them for voting in favor of impeachment and urges them to get to work on the real issues .
Naturally , the work will begin on these real issues when Republicans are voted out of power – when Mitch McConnell is no longer allowed to act as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Senate .
The fact is that more Republicans are fleeing their own party than the other way around – and fewer independents are willing to vote for them as long as Donald Trump is the head of their party .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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How unpopular are Republicans right now? Something like one third of likely voters have a favorable opinion of the GOP, with nearly 60% of voters not so content with its leadership or lack thereof. Despite their poor approval ratings, the party continues to embrace ideas that are even less popular, and often downright dangerous. Since they can’t win elections by being honest about their own platform, they stoop to tactics like voter suppression to move the needle, since even taking up wedge issues like abortion and gun control seem to no longer work in their favor.
Not content enough with lying and misrepresenting the Democratic Party’s entire platform, the trend for Republicans lately has been to come up with a false narrative. The party has become too radical, they claim, enough that traditional, long-time Democrats are leaving and voting Republican instead. They tried this throughout the 2018 midterms, with the hashtag #walkaway on Twitter and newspaper op-eds from former Democrats endorsing Republicans, even culminating in a #walkaway parade on Washington for people to express their disgust with the party – the same party they like to blame for incivility in politics. They embarrassed themselves when only around 50 people showed up to the event.
Not to be outdone, the pro-GOP American Action Network ran a series of television ads decrying Rep. Xochitl Torres Small of New Mexico. Another ad denounces Anthony Brindisi (D-NY), and others lash out against Reps. Matt Cartwright (D-PA), Abby Finkenauer (D-IA), Jared Golden (D-ME), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Susie Lee (D-NV), Elaine Luria (D-VA), Ben McAdams (D-UT), Max Rose (D-NY), and Abigail Spanberger (D-VA). The problem? Each ad features the same woman, ‘Stacy,’ claiming to be a constituent of theirs.
In each ad, Stacy condemns them for voting in favor of impeachment and urges them to get to work on the real issues. Naturally, the work will begin on these real issues when Republicans are voted out of power – when Mitch McConnell is no longer allowed to act as the “Grim Reaper” of the Senate. The fact is that more Republicans are fleeing their own party than the other way around – and fewer independents are willing to vote for them as long as Donald Trump is the head of their party.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-19--The new face of evil

The new face of evil

In the film “ Hannah and her Sisters , ” Max von Sydow plays an artist named Frederick who comments on a TV broadcast about the Holocaust and the “ puzzled intellectuals declaring their mystification over the systematic murder of millions.
” Frederick continues , “ The reason they could never answer the question , ‘ How could it possibly happen , ’ is because it ’ s the wrong question .
Given what people are the question is , ‘ why doesn ’ t it happen more often ?
’ ” When I first saw the film when it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I knew the answer to Frederick ’ s question .
It didn ’ t happen more often , I believed , because Nazi Germany was a special case .
To be sure , historians searched in vain for reasons to explain the Holocaust , but there was something intangible about the Germans and the social forces at work back in the 1930s and 1940s that uniquely led to the Holocaust .
At least , that ’ s what historians thought and I agreed .
Frederick was simply wrong because people weren ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ My naïveté survived unchallenged until 2016 .
It was the election of Donald Trump and the refusal of so many people to recognize what a disaster he is for America that forever disabused me of the notion that the vast majority of people are fundamentally good .
I now think about a third are fundamentally evil , and have been lying dormant all these years waiting for another Hitler .
It ’ s no accident , either , that present day revivified Nazism is only ever aligned with the Republican Party and never @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that Republicans can not even bring themselves to admit out loud that they wish it were otherwise .
Many of them , like Trump and Stephen Miller and William Barr , love the Nazis and want to be just like them .
It is why you never hear them condemn Nazis or the Ku Klux Klan or White Supremacists – and you never will .
Bad people adore Hitler because he validates the hate and bigotry and fear they carry inside – whether they admit it out loud or not .
Donald Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at odds with American values , but perfectly consistent with the values of the Third Reich .
The only thing that prevents him from unleashing a second holocaust on the world is the inherently restrained powers of the presidency .
His constant complaints about those restraints ought to terrify us .
His self-anointed deluded immunity to those restraints is what got him impeached and is about to put him on trial next week .
Thanks to the recent informal testimony of Lev Parnas , we now have an improved understanding of just how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the people who support him actually is .
The chilling mafia-style activity in Ukraine , complete with goons and hoods and other despicable people bent on destroying the reputation of America ’ s ambassador for the crime of being upright and honest , is simply beyond belief .
The Republican attempt to defend Trump and discredit Parnas because Parnas is “ under indictment and about to stand trial ” is a laughable , immediate hypocrisy .
They don ’ t seem to notice ( or hope we don ’ t ) that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is just another word for impeachment ) and he ’ s about to stand trial .
To discredit someone for doing what Trump does in defense of Trump is characteristic of how deluded Trump ’ s apologists have now become .
The cynical tendency for some on both sides of the aisle to dismiss what Parnas has to say because he is perceived as a criminal is a mistake .
Parnas is a man who can be relied on to tell the truth .
He is in that rare crucible that tends to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in fact , the truth is all Parnas has , having been entirely abandoned by his former hero Donald Trump .
Parnas is coming to the cruel realization that Michael Cohen finally came to , that Donald Trump is the new face of evil , and Parnas was used and discarded by him .
You may depend on it that every word Parnas has uttered on the record to date is the truth , the whole truth and nothing but the truth .
I don ’ t want to forget , while I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the good in this drama , that organization without which Hitler would not have been possible , the Church .
In Hitler ’ s day it was the weak-kneed collaboration of the Catholics and the Lutherans that aided him in consolidating his power .
Today it is the evangelicals .
Which brings me to another quote from our artist friend Frederick from the movie “ Hannah and her Sisters , ” who said , “ If Jesus were alive today and saw what was being done in his name , he would never @ @ @ @ @

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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In the film “Hannah and her Sisters,” Max von Sydow plays an artist named Frederick who comments on a TV broadcast about the Holocaust and the “puzzled intellectuals declaring their mystification over the systematic murder of millions.” Frederick continues, “The reason they could never answer the question, ‘How could it possibly happen,’ is because it’s the wrong question. Given what people are the question is, ‘why doesn’t it happen more often?’”
When I first saw the film when it came out in 1986, I thought I knew the answer to Frederick’s question. It didn’t happen more often, I believed, because Nazi Germany was a special case. To be sure, historians searched in vain for reasons to explain the Holocaust, but there was something intangible about the Germans and the social forces at work back in the 1930s and 1940s that uniquely led to the Holocaust. At least, that’s what historians thought and I agreed. Frederick was simply wrong because people weren’t as generally bad as all that. My naïveté survived unchallenged until 2016.
It was the election of Donald Trump and the refusal of so many people to recognize what a disaster he is for America that forever disabused me of the notion that the vast majority of people are fundamentally good. I now think about a third are fundamentally evil, and have been lying dormant all these years waiting for another Hitler.
It’s no accident, either, that present day revivified Nazism is only ever aligned with the Republican Party and never the Democratic Party. So much so that Republicans cannot even bring themselves to admit out loud that they wish it were otherwise. Many of them, like Trump and Stephen Miller and William Barr, love the Nazis and want to be just like them. It is why you never hear them condemn Nazis or the Ku Klux Klan or White Supremacists – and you never will. Bad people adore Hitler because he validates the hate and bigotry and fear they carry inside – whether they admit it out loud or not.
Donald Trump’s beliefs about morality are fundamentally at odds with American values, but perfectly consistent with the values of the Third Reich. The only thing that prevents him from unleashing a second holocaust on the world is the inherently restrained powers of the presidency. His constant complaints about those restraints ought to terrify us. His self-anointed deluded immunity to those restraints is what got him impeached and is about to put him on trial next week.
Thanks to the recent informal testimony of Lev Parnas, we now have an improved understanding of just how deep and broad Trump’s criminality and the people who support him actually is. The chilling mafia-style activity in Ukraine, complete with goons and hoods and other despicable people bent on destroying the reputation of America’s ambassador for the crime of being upright and honest, is simply beyond belief.
The Republican attempt to defend Trump and discredit Parnas because Parnas is “under indictment and about to stand trial” is a laughable, immediate hypocrisy. They don’t seem to notice (or hope we don’t) that Donald Trump is under indictment (which is just another word for impeachment) and he’s about to stand trial. To discredit someone for doing what Trump does in defense of Trump is characteristic of how deluded Trump’s apologists have now become.
The cynical tendency for some on both sides of the aisle to dismiss what Parnas has to say because he is perceived as a criminal is a mistake. Parnas is a man who can be relied on to tell the truth. He is in that rare crucible that tends to yield truthful results. Right now, in fact, the truth is all Parnas has, having been entirely abandoned by his former hero Donald Trump. Parnas is coming to the cruel realization that Michael Cohen finally came to, that Donald Trump is the new face of evil, and Parnas was used and discarded by him. You may depend on it that every word Parnas has uttered on the record to date is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
I don’t want to forget, while I’m separating the bad guys from the good in this drama, that organization without which Hitler would not have been possible, the Church. In Hitler’s day it was the weak-kneed collaboration of the Catholics and the Lutherans that aided him in consolidating his power. Today it is the evangelicals. Which brings me to another quote from our artist friend Frederick from the movie “Hannah and her Sisters,” who said, “If Jesus were alive today and saw what was being done in his name, he would never stop throwing up.”
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-19--How the Democrats can put the squeeze on Mitch McConnell

Now with the impeachment trial in the majority-Republican Senate , you might think there ’ s little Democrats can do to further plead their case , but you ’ d be wrong .
Yes , Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is firmly on Trump ’ s side and shows little sign changing his mind .
Yes , GOP Senators continue to go up to bat for Trump ’ s illegal , impeachable , and traitorous behavior .
And yes , Trump has built a corrupt legal team .
But , if the Democrats play their cards right , they can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and it involves taking a page out of the Republicans ’ playbook : lockstep media barrage .
What exactly do I mean by this ?
Think about any major politically divisive thing from the past decade .
Republicans all seem to get on the same page about the issue , and they subsequently make as many media appearances as possible to get their message out .
They use language that appeals to the average Joe .
The result ?
Next time you talk to your neighbor , cousin , coworker , whomever @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Republican byline too .
So now it ’ s the Democrats ’ turn .
Democrats of all stripes , elected , unelected , party officials , and just party members — anyone who has a voice prominent enough — needs to get on the same page about impeachment and voting in 2020 .
Democrats need to strengthen their message , too .
Notice how the same country both helped Trump in 2016 and would have benefitted from Trump ’ s threat to withdraw aid to the Ukraine ?
You know , Russia ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ that the Democrats should harp on a little more ?
C ’ mon guys — get to it .
Drawing that connection and making it a big deal builds a stronger case against Trump , whether Trump intended to benefit Russia .
The more the American people are upset about Trump ’ s actions , the more pressure it puts on McConnell to hold a legitimate trial with testimonies from the likes of John Bolton and Lev Parnas .
In particular , the more pressure the people of Kentucky put on McConnell , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year , the more likely we are to see a legitimate Senate impeachment trial .
So that gets me to my last suggestion , and yet another page out of the Republicans ’ playbook .
Whenever Republicans want to dethrone a Democrat in office , or even a Republican they don ’ t like , they get megadonors to give enormous sums of money to , generally , Super PACs , and voila — they massively outspend their target and replace him or her with a bought lackey .
There are plenty of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more of them do the country a favor and donate an obscene amount of money—but just a fraction of their wealth—to McConnell ’ s rival .
Make his job as difficult as possible .
This isn ’ t a time to play games .
It ’ s time for the Democrats to play by Republican rules .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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Now with the impeachment trial in the majority-Republican Senate, you might think there’s little Democrats can do to further plead their case, but you’d be wrong. Yes, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is firmly on Trump’s side and shows little sign changing his mind. Yes, GOP Senators continue to go up to bat for Trump’s illegal, impeachable, and traitorous behavior. And yes, Trump has built a corrupt legal team. But, if the Democrats play their cards right, they can do some more serious damage to Trump, and it involves taking a page out of the Republicans’ playbook: lockstep media barrage.
What exactly do I mean by this? Think about any major politically divisive thing from the past decade. Republicans all seem to get on the same page about the issue, and they subsequently make as many media appearances as possible to get their message out. They use language that appeals to the average Joe. The result? Next time you talk to your neighbor, cousin, coworker, whomever, often they’re saying the Republican byline too. So now it’s the Democrats’ turn. Democrats of all stripes, elected, unelected, party officials, and just party members — anyone who has a voice prominent enough — needs to get on the same page about impeachment and voting in 2020.
Democrats need to strengthen their message, too. Notice how the same country both helped Trump in 2016 and would have benefitted from Trump’s threat to withdraw aid to the Ukraine? You know, Russia? Isn’t that an important nexus that the Democrats should harp on a little more? C’mon guys — get to it. Drawing that connection and making it a big deal builds a stronger case against Trump, whether Trump intended to benefit Russia.
The more the American people are upset about Trump’s actions, the more pressure it puts on McConnell to hold a legitimate trial with testimonies from the likes of John Bolton and Lev Parnas. In particular, the more pressure the people of Kentucky put on McConnell, who’s up for reelection this year, the more likely we are to see a legitimate Senate impeachment trial. So that gets me to my last suggestion, and yet another page out of the Republicans’ playbook.
Whenever Republicans want to dethrone a Democrat in office, or even a Republican they don’t like, they get megadonors to give enormous sums of money to, generally, Super PACs, and voila — they massively outspend their target and replace him or her with a bought lackey. There are plenty of billionaire Democrats. How about one or more of them do the country a favor and donate an obscene amount of money—but just a fraction of their wealth—to McConnell’s rival. Make his job as difficult as possible. This isn’t a time to play games. It’s time for the Democrats to play by Republican rules.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-19--Wait, Bill Barr was doing WHAT with Rudy Giuliani?

This week Lev Parnas decided to shine a spotlight squarely on Attorney General Bill Barr ’ s alleged role in working with Lev and Rudy Giuliani to criminally conspire with a Kremlin oligarch , in order to smear Robert Mueller .
Now that everyone is back to paying proper attention to Barr ’ s ongoing crime spree , it turns out Barr was indeed doing suspicious things with Giuliani .
Someone in the DOJ has now informed CNN that when Rudy Giuliani met with Department of Justice officials to try to convince them to go along with his criminal scheming @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” into the meeting so he could chat with some other people in the room who weren ’ t Rudy .
If this sounds like a ridiculous scenario , that ’ s because it is .
It ’ s fairly clear that this leak came from someone on Barr ’ s side ( likely Barr himself ) , in an effort to provide the most innocent explanation possible for the Barr-Giuliani meeting .
Why would Barr do this ?
He must have expected that with Lev Parnas now running his mouth , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ anyway .
Julie Zebrak , formerly of the DOJ , took to Twitter to point out a number of holes in the official story .
She pointed out that Bill Barr doesn ’ t even work on the same floor as the room where this meeting would taken place , and that Barr would have needed to travel with a security detail to get there .
In other words , Barr wasn ’ t randomly out looking for a vending machine and happened to walk into the meeting .
Barr made a point @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is afraid that Parnas has evidence of what was going on in that room .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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This week Lev Parnas decided to shine a spotlight squarely on Attorney General Bill Barr’s alleged role in working with Lev and Rudy Giuliani to criminally conspire with a Kremlin oligarch, in order to smear Robert Mueller. Now that everyone is back to paying proper attention to Barr’s ongoing crime spree, it turns out Barr was indeed doing suspicious things with Giuliani.
Someone in the DOJ has now informed CNN that when Rudy Giuliani met with Department of Justice officials to try to convince them to go along with his criminal scheming in Ukraine, Bill Barr “dropped” into the meeting so he could chat with some other people in the room who weren’t Rudy. If this sounds like a ridiculous scenario, that’s because it is.
It’s fairly clear that this leak came from someone on Barr’s side (likely Barr himself), in an effort to provide the most innocent explanation possible for the Barr-Giuliani meeting. Why would Barr do this? He must have expected that with Lev Parnas now running his mouth, the Barr-Giuliani meeting was about to become public anyway.
Julie Zebrak, formerly of the DOJ, took to Twitter to point out a number of holes in the official story. She pointed out that Bill Barr doesn’t even work on the same floor as the room where this meeting would taken place, and that Barr would have needed to travel with a security detail to get there. In other words, Barr wasn’t randomly out looking for a vending machine and happened to walk into the meeting. Barr made a point of meeting with Giuliani – and Barr is afraid that Parnas has evidence of what was going on in that room.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-20--What the heck did Rudy Giuliani just do?

For a minute there , we thought Rudy Giuliani might have something to say , and we got excited .
Whenever he opens his mouth these days , Donald Trump ’ s ugly secrets tend to leak out .
So we got excited tonight when Rudy perked up on Twitter and announced that he had a “ Very exciting project underway.
” The trouble : well , we ’ re not even sure what to make of this .
Rudy ’ s full tweet was “ Very exciting project underway !
Stay tuned.
” He then attached a link to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you click through , you find a mostly barren page that hasn ’ t had any posts in more than a week .
So where is Rudy ’ s new project ?
It can ’ t be his Facebook page itself ; he launched that several weeks ago while incorrectly declaring that he was the former U.S. Assistant Attorney General and a current “ Government Official.
” So what just happened ?
Apparently Rudy Giuliani had the equivalent of a Twitter fart .
The responses to his nonexistent announcement of nothing were less @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ You ’ re being fitted for your orange jumpsuit ?
” Another added , “ My guess is the only exciting project you ’ re looking at is making license plates in the local penitentiary.
” At this point Rudy Giuliani is just a sad punchline , a fading stooge stomping his feet incoherently while waiting for his inevitable arrest to come .
Considering the extent to which Lev Parnas keeps incriminating Rudy , you ’ d think Rudy would have something to say about it in response .
Instead he ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ project , and steering people to an empty page .

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For a minute there, we thought Rudy Giuliani might have something to say, and we got excited. Whenever he opens his mouth these days, Donald Trump’s ugly secrets tend to leak out. So we got excited tonight when Rudy perked up on Twitter and announced that he had a “Very exciting project underway.” The trouble: well, we’re not even sure what to make of this.
Rudy’s full tweet was “Very exciting project underway! Stay tuned.” He then attached a link to his official Facebook page. But if you click through, you find a mostly barren page that hasn’t had any posts in more than a week. So where is Rudy’s new project? It can’t be his Facebook page itself; he launched that several weeks ago while incorrectly declaring that he was the former U.S. Assistant Attorney General and a current “Government Official.” So what just happened?
Apparently Rudy Giuliani had the equivalent of a Twitter fart. The responses to his nonexistent announcement of nothing were less than kind. One respondent asked, “You’re being fitted for your orange jumpsuit?” Another added, “My guess is the only exciting project you’re looking at is making license plates in the local penitentiary.”
At this point Rudy Giuliani is just a sad punchline, a fading stooge stomping his feet incoherently while waiting for his inevitable arrest to come. Considering the extent to which Lev Parnas keeps incriminating Rudy, you’d think Rudy would have something to say about it in response. Instead he’s reduced to announcing a phantom new project, and steering people to an empty page.
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WORST NIGHTMARE

The Democrats refer to Donald Trump as “ the Framers ’ worst nightmare ” in their 111-page brief .
The actions taken by Trump during his time in office are likely making the Framers all turn over in their graves .
To be honest , the two charges made — abuse of power and obstruction of Congress — are light compared to everything this criminal has done .
Trump ’ s legal team is starting out as one might expect : muddying the waters .
Trump ’ s team is led by White House counsel Pat Cipollone and Jay Sekulow @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They allege that abuse of power and obstruction of Congress are not crimes , let alone impeachable offenses .
Let ’ s examine that claim .
Reuters looked at this very issue in December , engaging with legal scholars who have studied the Constitution .
Louis Michael Seidman of Georgetown Law explained that “ abuse of power ” in and of itself is not spelled out specifically in the Constitution .
However , Seidman reveals that “ other high Crimes and Misdemeanors ” does include abuses of power .
“ The U.S. has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” stated Seidman , “ and it does appear that what the president was doing was putting that national security interest at risk in exchange for political benefit.
” He went on to say : “ If that is what happened , that is the core of what impeachment is about.
” Reuters then compared the Nixon and Clinton impeachments .
Nixon was accused of abuse of power for authorizing tax audits of political opponents while Clinton was accused in his affair with Monica Lewinsky .
While we have to be careful not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about an affair under oath does not rise to the level of the actions taken by either Nixon or Trump , both of which are clear abuses of power .
With respect to obstruction of Congress , Trump ’ s actions in blocking subpoenas and testimony are a direct violation of the Constitution .
Nixon refused to turn over documents , including tape recordings , and Trump has refused to turn over documents .
Thus , he has very much violated this prong of “ high crimes and misdemeanors.
” That means his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ something better than “ the issues aren ’ t crimes.
” They may not be , but they are certainly Constitutional violations , and that is what impeachment is all about .
As for Team Trump ’ s allegations that impeachment articles are “ a dangerous attack on the right of the American people to freely choose their president , ” they can stuff it .
The Electoral College does a better job of that than impeachment could ever do , given that Hillary Clinton secured three million more votes than Trump and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them with their arguments : Trump is a narcissistic sociopath who thinks he can run roughshod over the world .
The Democrats are merely showing him that they will not stand idly by while he does the same to our Constitution .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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The Democrats refer to Donald Trump as “the Framers’ worst nightmare” in their 111-page brief. The actions taken by Trump during his time in office are likely making the Framers all turn over in their graves. To be honest, the two charges made — abuse of power and obstruction of Congress — are light compared to everything this criminal has done.
Trump’s legal team is starting out as one might expect: muddying the waters. Trump’s team is led by White House counsel Pat Cipollone and Jay Sekulow, Trump’s personal attorney. They allege that abuse of power and obstruction of Congress are not crimes, let alone impeachable offenses. Let’s examine that claim. Reuters looked at this very issue in December, engaging with legal scholars who have studied the Constitution. Louis Michael Seidman of Georgetown Law explained that “abuse of power” in and of itself is not spelled out specifically in the Constitution. However, Seidman reveals that “other high Crimes and Misdemeanors” does include abuses of power. “The U.S. has a national security interest in Ukraine,” stated Seidman, “and it does appear that what the president was doing was putting that national security interest at risk in exchange for political benefit.” He went on to say: “If that is what happened, that is the core of what impeachment is about.”
Reuters then compared the Nixon and Clinton impeachments. Nixon was accused of abuse of power for authorizing tax audits of political opponents while Clinton was accused in his affair with Monica Lewinsky. While we have to be careful not to belittle what Clinton did, lying about an affair under oath does not rise to the level of the actions taken by either Nixon or Trump, both of which are clear abuses of power.
With respect to obstruction of Congress, Trump’s actions in blocking subpoenas and testimony are a direct violation of the Constitution. Nixon refused to turn over documents, including tape recordings, and Trump has refused to turn over documents. Thus, he has very much violated this prong of “high crimes and misdemeanors.” That means his team might want to come up with something better than “the issues aren’t crimes.” They may not be, but they are certainly Constitutional violations, and that is what impeachment is all about.
As for Team Trump’s allegations that impeachment articles are “a dangerous attack on the right of the American people to freely choose their president,” they can stuff it. The Electoral College does a better job of that than impeachment could ever do, given that Hillary Clinton secured three million more votes than Trump and lost the election. This might help them with their arguments: Trump is a narcissistic sociopath who thinks he can run roughshod over the world. The Democrats are merely showing him that they will not stand idly by while he does the same to our Constitution.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-20--Donald Trump’s lawyers just got caught with their pants down

Lev Parnas may be done with his cable news interview tour ( for now ) , but he ’ s far from done releasing evidence that implicates Donald Trump and his top people .
During his CNN interview this past week , Parnas accused Trump ’ s lawyers of offering to represent him , only to turn around and attempt to stop him from getting out on bail .
Now Lev is releasing some ugly new evidence against Trump ’ s lawyers .
Lev Parnas ’ attorney Joseph Bondy has tweeted an email from Trump lawyer John Dowd to his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Toensing , Joseph DiGenova , Jane Raskin , and Kevin Downing .
In this email , Dowd is seen discussing the question of whether to have Lev and Igor Fruman testify before the House Intelligence Committee , within the context of Donald Trump ’ s impeachment strategy .
The email is dated October 8th , 2019 – the day before Lev was arrested .
In other words , Donald Trump ’ s legal team was treating Lev and Igor like pawns to be moved around a chess board , all the way up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for his attorneys Dowd and Downing to become Lev ’ s attorneys , in an apparent effort to keep him locked up .
This is all getting more fishy by the day .
Donald Trump ’ s lawyers got caught with their pants down in this email , and they ’ ve got a whole lot of explaining to do .
Some of the people involved in this email exchange are now preparing to represent Trump in his impeachment trial .
That ’ s a conflict of interest big enough to need Space @ @

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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Lev Parnas may be done with his cable news interview tour (for now), but he’s far from done releasing evidence that implicates Donald Trump and his top people. During his CNN interview this past week, Parnas accused Trump’s lawyers of offering to represent him, only to turn around and attempt to stop him from getting out on bail. Now Lev is releasing some ugly new evidence against Trump’s lawyers.
Lev Parnas’ attorney Joseph Bondy has tweeted an email from Trump lawyer John Dowd to his fellow Trump lawyers Rudy Giuliani, Victoria Toensing, Joseph DiGenova, Jane Raskin, and Kevin Downing. In this email, Dowd is seen discussing the question of whether to have Lev and Igor Fruman testify before the House Intelligence Committee, within the context of Donald Trump’s impeachment strategy.
The email is dated October 8th, 2019 – the day before Lev was arrested. In other words, Donald Trump’s legal team was treating Lev and Igor like pawns to be moved around a chess board, all the way up to their arrest. Trump then arranged for his attorneys Dowd and Downing to become Lev’s attorneys, in an apparent effort to keep him locked up.
This is all getting more fishy by the day. Donald Trump’s lawyers got caught with their pants down in this email, and they’ve got a whole lot of explaining to do. Some of the people involved in this email exchange are now preparing to represent Trump in his impeachment trial. That’s a conflict of interest big enough to need Space Force.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-20--Key Donald Trump official escorted out of White House by security

The historically inept and corrupt Donald Trump regime has had such constant and controversial personnel turnover , it ’ s no longer surprising when someone resigns from the Trump White House in protest or is fired amid scandal .
But it is notable when one of Trump ’ s key people is escorted out of the White House by security – which is what just happened .
Last night Bloomberg broke the news that Donald Trump ’ s White House National Security Council member Andrew Peek had been escorted out of the White House on Friday .
This is a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ expert on the NSC , meaning he has Fiona Hill ’ s old job .
Axios provided more details today , revealing that Peek wasn ’ t actually fired .
Instead he was escorted out due to a “ security-related investigation.
” This is noteworthy because Peek has only been on the job since November .
This means it ’ s very likely that the security issue is related to something that happened before he was hired , which in turn would mean that the Trump White House has once again failed to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hires .
Even if the investigation ends up clearing this guy , this kind of thing should have been flagged and squared away before he was hired .
Either the Trump regime had to humiliate an innocent guy by needlessly hauling him out of the White House , or the Trump regime has had a security threat working in the White House since November .
Of course the Trump regime has had a confirmed security threat – Donald Trump himself – in the Oval Office for the past three years .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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The historically inept and corrupt Donald Trump regime has had such constant and controversial personnel turnover, it’s no longer surprising when someone resigns from the Trump White House in protest or is fired amid scandal. But it is notable when one of Trump’s key people is escorted out of the White House by security – which is what just happened.
Last night Bloomberg broke the news that Donald Trump’s White House National Security Council member Andrew Peek had been escorted out of the White House on Friday. This is a big deal because Peek is the Russia expert on the NSC, meaning he has Fiona Hill’s old job. Axios provided more details today, revealing that Peek wasn’t actually fired. Instead he was escorted out due to a “security-related investigation.”
This is noteworthy because Peek has only been on the job since November. This means it’s very likely that the security issue is related to something that happened before he was hired, which in turn would mean that the Trump White House has once again failed to properly vet one of its own key hires. Even if the investigation ends up clearing this guy, this kind of thing should have been flagged and squared away before he was hired.
Either the Trump regime had to humiliate an innocent guy by needlessly hauling him out of the White House, or the Trump regime has had a security threat working in the White House since November. Of course the Trump regime has had a confirmed security threat – Donald Trump himself – in the Oval Office for the past three years.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-20--Donald Trump’s impeachment trial legal team is already going off the rails

Donald Trump ’ s impeachment trial legal team consists of corrupt and compromised lowlifes who are willing to follow whatever idiotic strategy he wants , and who won ’ t ask him for a paycheck .
Trump doesn ’ t have some secret evil genius strategy when it comes to picking these people ; he ’ s just being delusional , narcissistic , and cheap .
Predictably , it ’ s already going off the rails .
At this point the final vote tally in the Senate impeachment trial is almost irrelevant .
Barring some major earth-shifting development , there @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to convict him .
But Trump can only consider the trial a “ win ” if it gains him additional supporters in the process , because his current poll numbers make clear that he ’ s not even in contention for 2020 .
Unless he can use the trial to boost his approval rating , Trump ’ s presidency will die a painful death in th 2020 election .
But Trump has never seemed to understand this .
Instead he focuses solely on firing up his base , even though they ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and they can only vote once each , and they ’ re not within a million miles of being large enough to get him reelected on their own .
Trump makes no effort at expanding his popularity .
Instead he spends a lot of time pretending he ’ s far more popular than he is ; for instance he tweeted a fake 51 % approval rating today , and then he argued that it ’ s actually ten points higher .
This is the work of someone who is unwittingly , doing everything @ @ @ @ @ @ @ us to Donald Trump ’ s impeachment trial legal team .
Instead of trying to make valid legal arguments , or even persuasive arguments in the court of public opinion , the initial legal briefs being filed by Trump ’ s lawyers are basically just elongated versions of his idiotic tweets .
This crap won ’ t gain Trump a single vote in 2020 .
Because he ’ s so psychologically compromised , he doing everything he can to lose in 2020 .
The question is what you ’ re going to do @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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Donald Trump’s impeachment trial legal team consists of corrupt and compromised lowlifes who are willing to follow whatever idiotic strategy he wants, and who won’t ask him for a paycheck. Trump doesn’t have some secret evil genius strategy when it comes to picking these people; he’s just being delusional, narcissistic, and cheap. Predictably, it’s already going off the rails.
At this point the final vote tally in the Senate impeachment trial is almost irrelevant. Barring some major earth-shifting development, there won’t be enough Senate votes to convict him. But Trump can only consider the trial a “win” if it gains him additional supporters in the process, because his current poll numbers make clear that he’s not even in contention for 2020. Unless he can use the trial to boost his approval rating, Trump’s presidency will die a painful death in th 2020 election.
But Trump has never seemed to understand this. Instead he focuses solely on firing up his base, even though they’re already going to vote for him, and they can only vote once each, and they’re not within a million miles of being large enough to get him reelected on their own. Trump makes no effort at expanding his popularity. Instead he spends a lot of time pretending he’s far more popular than he is; for instance he tweeted a fake 51% approval rating today, and then he argued that it’s actually ten points higher. This is the work of someone who is unwittingly, doing everything possible to lose reelection.
That brings us to Donald Trump’s impeachment trial legal team. Instead of trying to make valid legal arguments, or even persuasive arguments in the court of public opinion, the initial legal briefs being filed by Trump’s lawyers are basically just elongated versions of his idiotic tweets. This crap won’t gain Trump a single vote in 2020. Because he’s so psychologically compromised, he doing everything he can to lose in 2020. The question is what you’re going to do to help make sure he does lose.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-20--Lev Parnas just made his move against Attorney General Bill Barr

Last week , Ukraine scandal figure Lev Parnas went on television and made a number of serious accusations of criminal misconduct against Attorney General Bill Barr – including the assertion that Barr was in on a plot to drop the case against a Kremlin oligarch in exchange for dirt on Robert Mueller .
Now Parnas is formally making his move against Barr .
Lev Parnas and his attorney Joseph Bondy have filed a letter aimed at forcing Bill Barr to recuse himself from the criminal case against Parnas , and forcing the appointment of a special prosecutor from “ outside @ @ @ @ @ @ @ over the case .
The letter alleges that Barr ’ s DOJ has been withholding key evidence and information from Parnas that could help him at trial .
Here ’ s the thing .
Parnas didn ’ t just send this letter to the DOJ .
He also sent it to the judge in his criminal case .
It ’ s up to the judge ’ s discretion whether to get involved in the matter .
But this is the same judge who recently gave Parnas permission to hand over the evidence in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Committee , so this judge has already shown a willingness to play ball with Parnas ’ requests .
Even as Attorney General , Bill Barr doesn ’ t have a magic wand for being able to just do whatever he wants .
If he concludes that the court pressure , public pressure , and media pressure on him is such that his best option for surviving this is to recuse himself , he could end up having little choice but to do it .
Parnas could then cut a cooperating plea deal with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Rudy Giuliani , Bill Barr , Donald Trump , and others .
Stay tuned on this one .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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Last week, Ukraine scandal figure Lev Parnas went on television and made a number of serious accusations of criminal misconduct against Attorney General Bill Barr – including the assertion that Barr was in on a plot to drop the case against a Kremlin oligarch in exchange for dirt on Robert Mueller. Now Parnas is formally making his move against Barr.
Lev Parnas and his attorney Joseph Bondy have filed a letter aimed at forcing Bill Barr to recuse himself from the criminal case against Parnas, and forcing the appointment of a special prosecutor from “outside the Department of Justice” to take over the case. The letter alleges that Barr’s DOJ has been withholding key evidence and information from Parnas that could help him at trial. Here’s the thing.
Parnas didn’t just send this letter to the DOJ. He also sent it to the judge in his criminal case. It’s up to the judge’s discretion whether to get involved in the matter. But this is the same judge who recently gave Parnas permission to hand over the evidence in his criminal case to the House Intelligence Committee, so this judge has already shown a willingness to play ball with Parnas’ requests.
Even as Attorney General, Bill Barr doesn’t have a magic wand for being able to just do whatever he wants. If he concludes that the court pressure, public pressure, and media pressure on him is such that his best option for surviving this is to recuse himself, he could end up having little choice but to do it. Parnas could then cut a cooperating plea deal with the special prosecutor and formally flip on Rudy Giuliani, Bill Barr, Donald Trump, and others. Stay tuned on this one.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.


palmerreport--2020-01-20--Donald Trump is a domestic terrorist

Donald Trump is a domestic terrorist

The entire notion of a “ gun rights rally ” is nothing more than an opportunity for far-right domestic terrorists to show off the guns they plan to use if they attack the United States .
The mere existence of these kinds of rallies is arguably the strongest argument for stricter gun control laws .
Today ’ s “ gun rights rally ” in Richmond , Virginia is made all the more disturbing by the white supremacist element that ’ s even more blatant than usual during gun fetish events .
Look at these deranged lunatics who turned out for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ guns to try to compensate for their insecurities , and dressed in camouflage because they think their violent fetish is a game .
These idiots don ’ t even know laws they ’ re protesting for or against , as evidenced by this video : Donald Trump , who never misses an opportunity to align himself with white supremacists and domestic terrorists , tweeted this today : “ The Democrat Party in the Great Commonwealth of Virginia are working hard to take away your 2nd Amendment rights.
” That ’ s right , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ armed and mentally unstable rage monsters toward committing violence today .
Once Trump is gone from office , he must be criminally charged for suborning terrorism , in addition to his financial crimes and other crimes .

Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support Palmer Report's 2024 efforts by donating now.
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The entire notion of a “gun rights rally” is nothing more than an opportunity for far-right domestic terrorists to show off the guns they plan to use if they attack the United States. The mere existence of these kinds of rallies is arguably the strongest argument for stricter gun control laws. Today’s “gun rights rally” in Richmond, Virginia is made all the more disturbing by the white supremacist element that’s even more blatant than usual during gun fetish events.
Look at these deranged lunatics who turned out for today’s rally, brandishing large guns to try to compensate for their insecurities, and dressed in camouflage because they think their violent fetish is a game. These idiots don’t even know laws they’re protesting for or against, as evidenced by this video:
Donald Trump, who never misses an opportunity to align himself with white supremacists and domestic terrorists, tweeted this today: “The Democrat Party in the Great Commonwealth of Virginia are working hard to take away your 2nd Amendment rights.” That’s right, Trump tried to help steer these heavily armed and mentally unstable rage monsters toward committing violence today. Once Trump is gone from office, he must be criminally charged for suborning terrorism, in addition to his financial crimes and other crimes.
Important note: Palmer Report has led the way in political analysis. Now we're gearing up to cover the 2024 election, up and down the ballot. Help support our 2024 efforts by donating now or sign up for our free mailing list.