occupydemocrats--2020-01-12--Trump Sunday morning tweet roundup: Read ’em and weep

Donald Trump spent his Sunday morning as he has most mornings since his impeachment was voted through by the House of Representatives — at least any morning when he wasn ’ t ordering the assassination of Iranian generals or playing golf — tweeting and retweeting his laments at the unfairness of those bad and nasty Democrats who had the nerve to try to hold his poor innocent self to account for his actions and praising his own decisive actions in ordering the assassination of an Iranian military leader .
After warming up his Twitter thumbs on a couple of quick @ @ @ @ @ @ @ yesterday ’ s tennis and football competitions — perhaps Fox News was in the middle of a sports segment when he tuned in this morning — Trump alternated between pity-party moans about impeachment and portraying his war crime against Iran as an example of his strong and brave leadership .
He began with a warning to the Iranian government , asking them to respect human rights and international law in a way that he himself had no compunction in ignoring when he ordered the killing of that country ’ s head of its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ let reporters roam free !
” coming from an administration that hasn ’ t held a daily White House press briefing since last March was sure to inspire chortles from both the U.S. media and the Iranian government alike .
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump .
Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial !
Next , Trump must have noticed that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was scheduled to appear on ABC ‘ s This Week Sunday morning news program , so he decided to suggest a few @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ask his guest .
The president may be resorting to calling the House Speaker “ Crazy Nancy , ” but she isn ’ t the one who is being impeached , and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Schiff ’ s paraphrasing of Trump ’ s supposedly “ perfect ” phone call shows exactly who the one who has been caught is .
Trump ’ s evaluation of the fairness of his impeachment hearings is largely due to his displeasure of the results despite his unprecedented attempts to obstruct the investigation .
It was back @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the president as he attacked former Senator and Secretary of State John Kerry , one of the architects of the Iran nuclear deal that he torpedoed , leading to the disastrous foreign policy situation he now finds himself in .
Only a complete fool would continue to peddle the false right-wing narrative that the money that went to Iran after they signed the now-defunct nuclear deal wasn ’ t their own funds that had been frozen and held hostage by the U.S. after the 1979 Islamic revolution that deposed the U.S.-backed Shah @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out to Fox and Friends to quoting praise he received from another outlet in the Rupert Murdoch media empire , The New York Post .
Despite the obvious mischaracterization of the president ’ s actions and motivations by Mr. Goodwin , Trump at least said one true thing in this thread — he could not have said it better himself .
By this point , most people would have finished their breakfast and moved on to the day ’ s work , but the president still had more democrats to malign , more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is a sampling of his propaganda effort , so obviously designed to convince his minority of followers that it was the Democrats ’ impeachment judgment that was illegal and wrong rather than his own extortion attempts towards Ukraine and the subsequent coverup attempts : Trump can bleat all he wants , the stigma is permanently attached to his name in the history books due to his own bad behavior .
We ’ ve read the transcripts , and the fact remains that the transcripts , along with those few current and former administration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ refuse to testify before the House impeachment inquiry , have provided more than enough evidence of his guilt — despite his protestations and obstruction — to convince a majority of Americans that he should be removed from office .
Remember — as Trump apparently doesn ’ t — that those tens of millions of voters who chose him as their candidate were fewer than those who voted for Hillary Clinton and would feel that his removal from office would restore the true democratic results of the last presidential election .
Now if only @ @ @ @ @ @ @ courage to follow the Constitution rather than toady to their political patron , that will of the majority — the very basis of democracy — could be realized .
Such was the president ’ s use of his morning “ executive time ” on this January Sunday .
Expect further Trump bloviation as the day progresses .
What do you think ?

Donald Trump spent his Sunday morning as he has most mornings since his impeachment was voted through by the House of Representatives — at least any morning when he wasn’t ordering the assassination of Iranian generals or playing golf — tweeting and retweeting his laments at the unfairness of those bad and nasty Democrats who had the nerve to try to hold his poor innocent self to account for his actions and praising his own decisive actions in ordering the assassination of an Iranian military leader.
After warming up his Twitter thumbs on a couple of quick posts congratulating the winners of two of yesterday’s tennis and football competitions — perhaps Fox News was in the middle of a sports segment when he tuned in this morning — Trump alternated between pity-party moans about impeachment and portraying his war crime against Iran as an example of his strong and brave leadership.
He began with a warning to the Iranian government, asking them to respect human rights and international law in a way that he himself had no compunction in ignoring when he ordered the killing of that country’s head of its Revolutionary Guards forces.
To the leaders of Iran – DO NOT KILL YOUR PROTESTERS. Thousands have already been killed or imprisoned by you, and the World is watching. More importantly, the USA is watching. Turn your internet back on and let reporters roam free! Stop the killing of your great Iranian people! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2020
The line about “let reporters roam free!” coming from an administration that hasn’t held a daily White House press briefing since last March was sure to inspire chortles from both the U.S. media and the Iranian government alike.
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump. Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial!
Next, Trump must have noticed that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was scheduled to appear on ABC‘s This Week Sunday morning news program, so he decided to suggest a few snarky questions for host George Stephanopolous to ask his guest.
George @GStephanopoulos, ask Crazy Nancy why she allowed Adam “Shifty” Schiff to totally make up my conversation with the Ukrainian President & read his false words to Congress and the world, as though I said it? He got caught! Ask why hearing was most unfair & biased in history? — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2020
The president may be resorting to calling the House Speaker “Crazy Nancy,” but she isn’t the one who is being impeached, and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Schiff’s paraphrasing of Trump’s supposedly “perfect” phone call shows exactly who the one who has been caught is.
Trump’s evaluation of the fairness of his impeachment hearings is largely due to his displeasure of the results despite his unprecedented attempts to obstruct the investigation.
It was back to Iran for the next Twitter missive from the president as he attacked former Senator and Secretary of State John Kerry, one of the architects of the Iran nuclear deal that he torpedoed, leading to the disastrous foreign policy situation he now finds himself in.
John Kerry got caught essentially admitting that funds given ridiculously to Iran were used to fund attacks on the USA. Only a complete fool would have given that 150 Billion Dollars Plus to Iran. They then went on a Middle East Rampage! @foxandfriends @PeteHegseth — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2020
Only a complete fool would continue to peddle the false right-wing narrative that the money that went to Iran after they signed the now-defunct nuclear deal wasn’t their own funds that had been frozen and held hostage by the U.S. after the 1979 Islamic revolution that deposed the U.S.-backed Shah.
Trump then jumped from his shout out to Fox and Friends to quoting praise he received from another outlet in the Rupert Murdoch media empire, The New York Post.
Michael Goodwin, New York Post: “Trump’s peace through strength philosophy is what America needs. His (John Kerry) claim bears no relation to reality. The Agreement didn’t create opportunities for America & other signatories to confront Iran’s malign activities. It overlooked…. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2020
….discretion, and only as a last resort.” Thank you to the great Michael Goodwin. Could not have said it better myself! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2020
Despite the obvious mischaracterization of the president’s actions and motivations by Mr. Goodwin, Trump at least said one true thing in this thread — he could not have said it better himself.
By this point, most people would have finished their breakfast and moved on to the day’s work, but the president still had more democrats to malign, more Fox News hosts to retweet. Here is a sampling of his propaganda effort, so obviously designed to convince his minority of followers that it was the Democrats’ impeachment judgment that was illegal and wrong rather than his own extortion attempts towards Ukraine and the subsequent coverup attempts:
“Pelosi has made a mockery of Impeachment. Her Articles are so weak. But more importantly, she thought she could extort the Senate. She couldn’t.” @GreggJarrett @foxandfriends The Do Nothing Democrats are really run by the Radical Left. Too bad! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2020
Great idea. This phony Impeachment Hoax should not even be allowed to proceed. Did NOTHING wrong. Just a partisan vote. Zero Republicans. Never happened before! https://t.co/47oV6z4RQc — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2020
Why did Nervous Nancy allow corrupt politician Shifty Schiff to lie before Congress? He must be a Witness, and so should she! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2020
Why should I have the stigma of Impeachment attached to my name when I did NOTHING wrong? Read the Transcripts! A totally partisan Hoax, never happened before. House Republicans voted 195-0, with three Dems voting with the Republicans. Very unfair to tens of millions of voters! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2020
Trump can bleat all he wants, the stigma is permanently attached to his name in the history books due to his own bad behavior.
We’ve read the transcripts, and the fact remains that the transcripts, along with those few current and former administration officials who defied his order to unconstitutionally refuse to testify before the House impeachment inquiry, have provided more than enough evidence of his guilt — despite his protestations and obstruction — to convince a majority of Americans that he should be removed from office.
Remember — as Trump apparently doesn’t — that those tens of millions of voters who chose him as their candidate were fewer than those who voted for Hillary Clinton and would feel that his removal from office would restore the true democratic results of the last presidential election.
Now if only the Republicans in the Senate had the courage to follow the Constitution rather than toady to their political patron, that will of the majority — the very basis of democracy — could be realized.
Such was the president’s use of his morning “executive time” on this January Sunday. Expect further Trump bloviation as the day progresses.
Follow Vinnie Longobardo on Twitter.
Vinnie Longobardo Managing Editor Vinnie Longobardo is the Managing Editor of Occupy Democrats. He's a 35-year veteran of the TV, mobile & internet industries, specializing in start-ups and the international media business. His passions are politics, music, and art. Latest Posts


occupydemocrats--2020-01-13--“It means you’re going to lose”: Bernie Sanders’ perfect reply to Trump tweet

The recent poll that shows Senator Bernie Sanders ( I-VT ) now in the lead in the Iowa Democratic caucuses has managed to cut through the avalanche of impeachment and Iran debacle worries that have so occupied Donald Trump ’ s mind of late .
Trump took time from his usual Twitter diet of attacks on the House Democratic leaders who engineered his impeachment referral to the Senate and bragging about his Iran war crime to express his amazement at the latest developments in the opposition party ’ s race to choose his eventual rival for the White House .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the president didn ’ t even spend enough time composing his tweet to come up with a unique nickname to belittle him with , given that Trump had used the same “ Crazy ” appellation earlier in the day to describe House Speaker Nancy Pelosi .
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump .
Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial !
Instead , the leader of the Democratic Socialist faction of progressive Democrats simply replied to Trump ’ s seemingly rhetorical question as to the meaning of Sanders ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , none of the president ’ s prospective Democratic opponents will have to even think about running against Donald Trump because he ’ ll be removed from office before the election begins in earnest .
What do you think ?

The recent poll that shows Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) now in the lead in the Iowa Democratic caucuses has managed to cut through the avalanche of impeachment and Iran debacle worries that have so occupied Donald Trump’s mind of late.
Trump took time from his usual Twitter diet of attacks on the House Democratic leaders who engineered his impeachment referral to the Senate and bragging about his Iran war crime to express his amazement at the latest developments in the opposition party’s race to choose his eventual rival for the White House.
Wow! Crazy Bernie Sanders is surging in the polls, looking very good against his opponents in the Do Nothing Party. So what does this all mean? Stay tuned! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2020
Senator Sanders could have been insulted that the president didn’t even spend enough time composing his tweet to come up with a unique nickname to belittle him with, given that Trump had used the same “Crazy” appellation earlier in the day to describe House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump. Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial!
Instead, the leader of the Democratic Socialist faction of progressive Democrats simply replied to Trump’s seemingly rhetorical question as to the meaning of Sanders’ surge in the Iowa polls.
It means you’re going to lose. https://t.co/CVBKoKq8DT — Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) January 12, 2020
Insert rimshot here.
Hopefully, none of the president’s prospective Democratic opponents will have to even think about running against Donald Trump because he’ll be removed from office before the election begins in earnest.
As the president advises, stay tuned!
Follow Vinnie Longobardo on Twitter.
Vinnie Longobardo Managing Editor Vinnie Longobardo is the Managing Editor of Occupy Democrats. He's a 35-year veteran of the TV, mobile & internet industries, specializing in start-ups and the international media business. His passions are politics, music, and art. Latest Posts


occupydemocrats--2020-01-14--Top Senate Republican comes out against “infecting the trial” with Trump lapdogs Gaetz and Jordan

Its that time of the year when people are sniffling and fighting off nasty illnesses as the folks around them struggle to avoid infection .
Whatever your position on vaccines , the best way to avoid contracting a viral disease is to never allow yourself to be infected to begin with .
That ’ s exactly the thinking of Senator John Cornyn ( R-TX ) as he weighs in on the subject of who the GOP will select as their impeachment managers for Donald Trump ’ s upcoming Senate trial , already more imminent than any planned attack on U.S. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ essentially play the roles of the prosecution and defense attorneys in the Senate trial and present the arguments on behalf of both the aggrieved party , in this case , the House of Representatives , and the defendant , the president .
Capitol Hill scuttlebutt has Trump ’ s Republican allies seriously considering handing the defense duties over to one of those scrappy Congressmen who so disrupted the House impeachment hearings with their desperate antics determined to deter the incriminating testimony that resulted in the necessity for managers to be appointed .
McConnell @ @ @ @ @ @ @ your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial !
The names being bandied about include Representatives Jim Jordan ( R-OH ) , Matt Gaetz ( R-FL ) , John Ratcliffe ( R-TX ) and Mark Meadows ( R-NC ) who all gained reputations for their ability to ignore the evidence presented in the hearings they attended in favor of blindly combative stances to protect Trump at all costs to their credibility .
One would think that their failure to actually impede impeachment ’ s forward motion would paint these Republican Congressmen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ accomplish their mission due to their incompetence and general ugly surliness , but apparently these are the folks that the president in his infinite wisdom feels are best suited to fight the charges that only he and those either blinded by his propaganda apparatus or directly benefiting from his administration ’ s wretched policies believe are unjustified .
Count Senator Cornyn among the few GOP luminaries who realize the liability that importing the politically brawling styles of the other chamber of Congress to the Senate floor would impose upon both the decorum of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the president ’ s trial .
While Senator Cornyn may garner some laudatory support from Democrats over his comments declaring that his tony neighborhood shouldn ’ t allow the likes of that sort of riff-raff to congregate in their hallowed halls , he fails to realize that the ringmaster and his impeachment strategists are unlikely to see a “ circus-like atmosphere ” as a negative attribute .
Cornyn and some of the other old school Republican Senators may think that the long-standing Congressional traditions of respect for colleagues of both parties are still @ @ @ @ @ @ @ realize that Trump is a cornered rat caught in a street fight for his life with no scruples against using every dirty trick that he can think of to keep from being removed from office and subsequently subject to prosecution for the multiple offenses that he should have been investigated for and sent to prison long before he took office .
If only Senator Cornyn ’ s fantasy of an ideal and dispassionate deliberative body conducting the impeachment trial of Donald J. Trump was even close to the reality that we will soon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the same rabidly partisan attack dogs let loose in the Senate trial that you saw making a mockery of the House investigations .
If that ’ s the way Donald wants it , then all the advice from smarter , more strategic counselors won ’ t do a thing to change his mind .
What do you think ?

Its that time of the year when people are sniffling and fighting off nasty illnesses as the folks around them struggle to avoid infection.
Whatever your position on vaccines, the best way to avoid contracting a viral disease is to never allow yourself to be infected to begin with.
That’s exactly the thinking of Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) as he weighs in on the subject of who the GOP will select as their impeachment managers for Donald Trump’s upcoming Senate trial, already more imminent than any planned attack on U.S. embassies by Iran.
The impeachment managers essentially play the roles of the prosecution and defense attorneys in the Senate trial and present the arguments on behalf of both the aggrieved party, in this case, the House of Representatives, and the defendant, the president.
Capitol Hill scuttlebutt has Trump’s Republican allies seriously considering handing the defense duties over to one of those scrappy Congressmen who so disrupted the House impeachment hearings with their desperate antics determined to deter the incriminating testimony that resulted in the necessity for managers to be appointed.
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump. Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial!
The names being bandied about include Representatives Jim Jordan (R-OH), Matt Gaetz (R-FL), John Ratcliffe (R-TX) and Mark Meadows (R-NC) who all gained reputations for their ability to ignore the evidence presented in the hearings they attended in favor of blindly combative stances to protect Trump at all costs to their credibility.
One would think that their failure to actually impede impeachment’s forward motion would paint these Republican Congressmen as partisan hacks who were unable to accomplish their mission due to their incompetence and general ugly surliness, but apparently these are the folks that the president in his infinite wisdom feels are best suited to fight the charges that only he and those either blinded by his propaganda apparatus or directly benefiting from his administration’s wretched policies believe are unjustified.
Count Senator Cornyn among the few GOP luminaries who realize the liability that importing the politically brawling styles of the other chamber of Congress to the Senate floor would impose upon both the decorum of the upper chamber and the outcome of the president’s trial.
Cornyn added: “And I think there would be an increased risk of doing that if you start inviting House members to come over to the Senate and try the case." — Manu Raju (@mkraju) January 13, 2020
While Senator Cornyn may garner some laudatory support from Democrats over his comments declaring that his tony neighborhood shouldn’t allow the likes of that sort of riff-raff to congregate in their hallowed halls, he fails to realize that the ringmaster and his impeachment strategists are unlikely to see a “circus-like atmosphere” as a negative attribute.
Cornyn and some of the other old school Republican Senators may think that the long-standing Congressional traditions of respect for colleagues of both parties are still in effect, but they fail to realize that Trump is a cornered rat caught in a street fight for his life with no scruples against using every dirty trick that he can think of to keep from being removed from office and subsequently subject to prosecution for the multiple offenses that he should have been investigated for and sent to prison long before he took office.
If only Senator Cornyn’s fantasy of an ideal and dispassionate deliberative body conducting the impeachment trial of Donald J. Trump was even close to the reality that we will soon face.
Unfortunately, expect to see the same rabidly partisan attack dogs let loose in the Senate trial that you saw making a mockery of the House investigations. If that’s the way Donald wants it, then all the advice from smarter, more strategic counselors won’t do a thing to change his mind.
Follow Vinnie Longobardo on Twitter.
Original reporting by Bob Brigham at RawStory.
Vinnie Longobardo Managing Editor Vinnie Longobardo is the Managing Editor of Occupy Democrats. He's a 35-year veteran of the TV, mobile & internet industries, specializing in start-ups and the international media business. His passions are politics, music, and art. Latest Posts


occupydemocrats--2020-01-13--Ivanka brags about popularity of her dad’s Persian tweet despite Twitter being banned in Iran

Through a noxious concoction of recklessness , strategic ignorance , and a desire to distract from his ongoing impeachment , Donald Trump recently came dangerously close to fomenting a war between the United States and Iran .
Now that tensions have cooled somewhat , he ’ s trying to push the narrative that he genuinely cares about the freedom of the Iranian people and supports their struggle against the theocratic regime of the Ayatollah .
Of course , it would be much easier to take this claim at face value if he hadn ’ t already carelessly flirted with starting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the deaths of countless Iranians .
Trump cares little about other people and even less about freedom .
One of his tweets over the weekend was written in Farsi and translated to “ To the brave and suffering Iranian people : I have stood with you since the beginning of my presidency and my government will continue to stand with you .
We are following your protests closely .
Your courage is inspiring.
” McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump .
Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial !
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a bad joke , one which was made even worse by his decision today to retweet a racist photoshopped meme of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer that was edited make them look like Iranians caricatures .
Ivanka Trump ended up tweeting in support of her father ’ s tweet , sharing an article that stated that the president ’ s Farsi tweet was the “ most like Persian tweet ” in the history of Twitter .
It ’ s just like the First Daughter to fawn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ petty or irrelevant things while ignoring the broader , more disastrous strokes of his White House .
In this case , she celebrated an arbitrary accumulation of likes and retweets while sidestepping the fact that his incompetent leadership almost stumbled us facefirst into a massive armed conflict .
As John Haltiwanger of Business Insider pointed out though , Twitter is banned in Iran .
In other words , it ’ s not impressive that Trump racked up a record Farsi tweet since Iranians can ’ t tweet at all , let alone in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at this point , Twitter swarmed the First Daughter with ruthless mockery .
What do you think ?

Through a noxious concoction of recklessness, strategic ignorance, and a desire to distract from his ongoing impeachment, Donald Trump recently came dangerously close to fomenting a war between the United States and Iran. Now that tensions have cooled somewhat, he’s trying to push the narrative that he genuinely cares about the freedom of the Iranian people and supports their struggle against the theocratic regime of the Ayatollah.
Of course, it would be much easier to take this claim at face value if he hadn’t already carelessly flirted with starting a war that would have resulted in the deaths of countless Iranians. Trump cares little about other people and even less about freedom. One of his tweets over the weekend was written in Farsi and translated to “To the brave and suffering Iranian people: I have stood with you since the beginning of my presidency and my government will continue to stand with you. We are following your protests closely. Your courage is inspiring.”
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump. Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial!
Coming from Trump, it read like a bad joke, one which was made even worse by his decision today to retweet a racist photoshopped meme of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer that was edited make them look like Iranians caricatures.
به مردم شجاع و رنج کشیده ایران: من از ابتدای دوره ریاست جمهوریم با شما ایستاده‌ام و دولت من همچنان با شما خواهد ایستاد. ما اعتراضات شما را از نزدیک دنبال می کنیم. شجاعت شما الهام بخش است. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 11, 2020
Ivanka Trump ended up tweeting in support of her father’s tweet, sharing an article that stated that the president’s Farsi tweet was the “most like Persian tweet” in the history of Twitter. It’s just like the First Daughter to fawn all over her paternal monster for utterly petty or irrelevant things while ignoring the broader, more disastrous strokes of his White House. In this case, she celebrated an arbitrary accumulation of likes and retweets while sidestepping the fact that his incompetent leadership almost stumbled us facefirst into a massive armed conflict.
President Trump’s message in Farsi supporting Iranian protesters is the most liked Persian tweet in history of Twitter. https://t.co/Yicr9H7M1w — Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) January 12, 2020
As John Haltiwanger of Business Insider pointed out though, Twitter is banned in Iran. In other words, it’s not impressive that Trump racked up a record Farsi tweet since Iranians can’t tweet at all, let alone in their native tongue.
As is expected at this point, Twitter swarmed the First Daughter with ruthless mockery.
https://twitter.com/appliedsoft/status/1216770120183402496?s=20
https://twitter.com/RutherfordRocks/status/1216771042586349570?s=20
https://twitter.com/RaeMargaret61/status/1216760225350537221?s=20
And he is the most hated man in America, Ivanka. That cannot be overstated. Please help your Dad decide to resign. The election will be humiliating for him. — Boston Judy (@BostonJudy3) January 13, 2020
He’s an American president and most of America did not like his tweet. — LisaBethRules (@LisaRules) January 13, 2020
https://twitter.com/onid22/status/1216438279500959750?s=20
Staff Report This is a staff report from former Occupy Democrats Editor in Chief Colin Taylor or contributor Rob Haffney. Latest Posts


occupydemocrats--2020-01-13--New report shows White House bracing itself for Republican defections in impeachment trial

If Donald Trump seems even more jittery than usual lately , it could because it ’ s dawning on him that the support among Republican Senators for conducting a sham impeachment trial without the testimony of fact witnesses to the accusations against the president is not as universal as he had believed it would be .
With CBS News now reporting that senior White House officials believe that as many as four GOP Senators — and possibly even more — will vote to call witnesses in the trial as has occurred at both previous presidential impeachment proceedings , the president @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his misadventures with Iran turned sentiment even further against him , even among some members of his own party .
Among the Republicans predicted to vote against Mitch McConnell ’ s plan for the immediate dismissal of the articles of impeachment being forwarded from the House of Representatives are Senators Lisa Murkowski of Alaska , Susan Collins of Maine , Mitt Romney of Utah and possibly Cory Gardner of Colorado .
Two other Senators are also considered possible defectors from the unbroken line of defense that Trump had hoped for — Rand Paul @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the administration ’ s failure to consult Congress before approving the assassination of an Iranian general , and Lamar Alexander ( R-TN ) , considered a strict “ institutionalist ” who may insist on following precedent by the Trump team .
As recently as last week , Senator Collins , considered vulnerable in her reelection bid after her vote to confirm Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh , told the media that she was working with a “ fairly small group ” of her colleagues to ensure that the appropriate testimony would be considered @ @ @ @ @ @ @ completely open to calling witnesses.
” Senator Murkowski has gone on the record as supporting conducting the trial under the same conditions that were in effect for the impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton and has openly said that she was disturbed by Majority Leader McConnell ’ s statements that he will coordinate with the White House to defeat the attempts to remove Trump from office .
For his part , Senator Romney seems particularly interested in seeing what former National Security Advisor John Bolton might have to say after Bolton agreed to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Alexander have each advocated that any trial be fair and impartial and Senator Paul has advocated for calling witnesses , although he would most like to see the whistleblower who exposed Trump ’ s extortionate plan to get Ukranian help in his reelection campaign testify .
With four being the minimum number of GOP defections necessary to ensure that witnesses are called in Trump ’ s trial , the White House is making contingency plans to invoke executive privilege to prevent Bolton from testifying according to CBS News , although the constitutionality of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ questionable .
Still , the fact that “ one senior official said the White House ’ s impeachment team and counsel ’ s office do not expect a quick dismissal of the impeachment articles in the Senate , ” as CBS News is reporting , indicates that the attempts by Trump and his legislative cronies to halt the incoming wave are possibly doomed to failure by politically vulnerable Republican Senators who don ’ t want to see their chances at reelection — and their legacies as public servants — marred by an association @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dismissed without a proper examination of the facts .
Even if the Senate votes to allow witnesses , their testimony will need to contain enormous bombshells of incriminating evidence against the president to overcome the barrier that a two-thirds majority vote to remove Trump from office would require .
That such evidence exists is likely .
Whether the Senate jurors — and more importantly the public — ever gets to see and hear it is the ultimate question .
Original reporting by Ben Tracy and Kathryn Watson at CBS News .
What do @ @ @

If Donald Trump seems even more jittery than usual lately, it could because it’s dawning on him that the support among Republican Senators for conducting a sham impeachment trial without the testimony of fact witnesses to the accusations against the president is not as universal as he had believed it would be.
With CBS News now reporting that senior White House officials believe that as many as four GOP Senators — and possibly even more — will vote to call witnesses in the trial as has occurred at both previous presidential impeachment proceedings, the president is likely feeling more nervous than before his misadventures with Iran turned sentiment even further against him, even among some members of his own party.
Among the Republicans predicted to vote against Mitch McConnell’s plan for the immediate dismissal of the articles of impeachment being forwarded from the House of Representatives are Senators Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine, Mitt Romney of Utah and possibly Cory Gardner of Colorado.
Two other Senators are also considered possible defectors from the unbroken line of defense that Trump had hoped for — Rand Paul (R-KY), who railed against the administration’s failure to consult Congress before approving the assassination of an Iranian general, and Lamar Alexander (R-TN), considered a strict “institutionalist” who may insist on following precedent by the Trump team.
As recently as last week, Senator Collins, considered vulnerable in her reelection bid after her vote to confirm Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, told the media that she was working with a “fairly small group” of her colleagues to ensure that the appropriate testimony would be considered, saying that they “should be completely open to calling witnesses.”
Senator Murkowski has gone on the record as supporting conducting the trial under the same conditions that were in effect for the impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton and has openly said that she was disturbed by Majority Leader McConnell’s statements that he will coordinate with the White House to defeat the attempts to remove Trump from office.
For his part, Senator Romney seems particularly interested in seeing what former National Security Advisor John Bolton might have to say after Bolton agreed to testify if subpoenaed. Senators Garner and Alexander have each advocated that any trial be fair and impartial and Senator Paul has advocated for calling witnesses, although he would most like to see the whistleblower who exposed Trump’s extortionate plan to get Ukranian help in his reelection campaign testify.
With four being the minimum number of GOP defections necessary to ensure that witnesses are called in Trump’s trial, the White House is making contingency plans to invoke executive privilege to prevent Bolton from testifying according to CBS News, although the constitutionality of such blocking in an impeachment proceeding is questionable.
Still, the fact that “one senior official said the White House’s impeachment team and counsel’s office do not expect a quick dismissal of the impeachment articles in the Senate,” as CBS News is reporting, indicates that the attempts by Trump and his legislative cronies to halt the incoming wave are possibly doomed to failure by politically vulnerable Republican Senators who don’t want to see their chances at reelection — and their legacies as public servants — marred by an association with such an obvious cover-up with charges dismissed without a proper examination of the facts.
Even if the Senate votes to allow witnesses, their testimony will need to contain enormous bombshells of incriminating evidence against the president to overcome the barrier that a two-thirds majority vote to remove Trump from office would require.
That such evidence exists is likely. Whether the Senate jurors — and more importantly the public — ever gets to see and hear it is the ultimate question.
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Original reporting by Ben Tracy and Kathryn Watson at CBS News.
Vinnie Longobardo Managing Editor Vinnie Longobardo is the Managing Editor of Occupy Democrats. He's a 35-year veteran of the TV, mobile & internet industries, specializing in start-ups and the international media business. His passions are politics, music, and art. Latest Posts


occupydemocrats--2020-01-13--Pelosi drops fact-hammer on Trump in response to complaints he wasn’t allowed impeachment witnesses

Donald Trump has been handling his impeachment about as well as any entitled , egomaniac with a fried attention span could be expected to .
Articles of impeachment have been passed in the House and Speaker Pelosi has yet to send them to the Senate .
The delay has allowed Democrats to draw attention to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell ’ s intention to work closely with the White House to exonerate Trump during his trial .
Powerless to expedite the process , Trump has been stuck in impeachment limbo , reduced to vainly lashing out on Twitter .
Earlier @ @ @ @ @ @ @ usual complaints about impeachment .
He claimed the Democrats have treated him unfairly throughout the process and whined that he didn ’ t get to call witnesses or have lawyers defend him in the House .
Of course , since impeachment in the House is a political process and not a trial , there would have been no reason for him to have either .
Trump likely knows this and is simply trying to distort his followers ’ perception of what the Democrats are doing .
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ himself from the trial !
His additional claim that he ’ s the victim of “ the most unfair witch-hunt in the history of Congress ” is so patently absurd that it can be laughed off and ignored out of hand .
By now , so much evidence and so many credible witness testimonies have been gathered that there ’ s simply no denying that Trump tried to abuse the powers of his office to coerce Ukraine into hurting a 2020 rival .
If there was any collective spine left in the desiccated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ admit this and push to remove him from office .
It didn ’ t take long for Pelosi to spot Trump ’ s misleading tweet and she hit him back with an avalanche of facts .
The Speaker pointed out that 66 witnesses testified during President Bill Clinton ’ s impeachment and that three of them were involved in the Senate trial .
On top of that , 90,000 pages of documentation were handed over to help in the process .
Trump , on the other hand , has balked at transparency every @ @ @ @ @ @ @ explained , Trump actively blocked his top aides from testifying and worked to cover up and block documents from being released .
“ # EndTheCoverUp , ” Pelosi concluded .
The president doesn ’ t want a fair trial , he wants his transgressions swept under the rug by his partisan minions .
McConnell ’ s refusal to agree to allow new witnesses during the Senate trial tells you everything you need to know about the Republicans ’ lack of interest in revealing the full truth of Trump ’ s actions to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have Speaker Pelosi to stand up to the GOP and Trump ’ s constant onslaught of lies .
So far she is proving more than up to the challenge .
What do you think ?

Donald Trump has been handling his impeachment about as well as any entitled, egomaniac with a fried attention span could be expected to. Articles of impeachment have been passed in the House and Speaker Pelosi has yet to send them to the Senate. The delay has allowed Democrats to draw attention to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s intention to work closely with the White House to exonerate Trump during his trial. Powerless to expedite the process, Trump has been stuck in impeachment limbo, reduced to vainly lashing out on Twitter.
Earlier today, Trump reheated some of his usual complaints about impeachment. He claimed the Democrats have treated him unfairly throughout the process and whined that he didn’t get to call witnesses or have lawyers defend him in the House. Of course, since impeachment in the House is a political process and not a trial, there would have been no reason for him to have either. Trump likely knows this and is simply trying to distort his followers’ perception of what the Democrats are doing.
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump. Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial!
His additional claim that he’s the victim of “the most unfair witch-hunt in the history of Congress” is so patently absurd that it can be laughed off and ignored out of hand. By now, so much evidence and so many credible witness testimonies have been gathered that there’s simply no denying that Trump tried to abuse the powers of his office to coerce Ukraine into hurting a 2020 rival. If there was any collective spine left in the desiccated corpse of the GOP they’d admit this and push to remove him from office.
“We demand fairness” shouts Pelosi and the Do Nothing Democrats, yet the Dems in the House wouldn’t let us have 1 witness, no lawyers or even ask questions. It was the most unfair witch-hunt in the history of Congress! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 13, 2020
It didn’t take long for Pelosi to spot Trump’s misleading tweet and she hit him back with an avalanche of facts. The Speaker pointed out that 66 witnesses testified during President Bill Clinton’s impeachment and that three of them were involved in the Senate trial. On top of that, 90,000 pages of documentation were handed over to help in the process.
Trump, on the other hand, has balked at transparency every step of the way. As Pelosi explained, Trump actively blocked his top aides from testifying and worked to cover up and block documents from being released. “#EndTheCoverUp,” Pelosi concluded.
The president doesn’t want a fair trial, he wants his transgressions swept under the rug by his partisan minions. McConnell’s refusal to agree to allow new witnesses during the Senate trial tells you everything you need to know about the Republicans’ lack of interest in revealing the full truth of Trump’s actions to the public. Luckily, the American people have Speaker Pelosi to stand up to the GOP and Trump’s constant onslaught of lies. So far she is proving more than up to the challenge.
In the Clinton impeachment process, 66 witnesses were allowed to testify including 3 in the Senate trial, and 90,000 pages of documents were turned over. Trump was too afraid to let any of his top aides testify & covered up every single document. The Senate must #EndTheCoverUp https://t.co/T0Yhpl6qDq — Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) January 13, 2020
Staff Report This is a staff report from former Occupy Democrats Editor in Chief Colin Taylor or contributor Rob Haffney. Latest Posts


occupydemocrats--2020-01-13--The White House bizarrely tweets out picture of a “First Snow” on unseasonably warm day in D.C.

It was almost like a test to see how many people would be willing to reject the evidence of their eyes and ears in the most Orwellian fashion .
Anyone not already a member of the cult of Donald Trump knows better than to believe a single thing that passes between his lips or typed by his tiny Twitter fingers .
There is still a third of the country , however , who are blind to his pattern of prevarication and diligent deception .
Last night ’ s tweet from the White House strained credulity beyond even what is typical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ history .
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump .
Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial !
On a day where the unseasonably warm temperature in the nation ’ s capital hit as high as 68 degrees , the White House decided to post this obviously erroneous photo and caption .
The reaction on Twitter was swift and furious .
With over 15 thousand lies to his credit — or more properly , his disgrace — the Trump White House ’ s misleading tweet about the current weather is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s statements that are totally disconnected from reality .
Luckily , the nation has yet to reach that point of no return where such blatant misrepresentations of the truth are simply accepted as the norm and not even worth pointing out .
In case anyone was interested in the actual truth , the first snow in Washington DC actually came several days earlier , last Tuesday , when the photo tweeted out by the White House was apparently taken , according to HuffPost .
Perhaps the photo got caught up in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it was subject to executive privilege .
What do you think ?

It was almost like a test to see how many people would be willing to reject the evidence of their eyes and ears in the most Orwellian fashion.
Anyone not already a member of the cult of Donald Trump knows better than to believe a single thing that passes between his lips or typed by his tiny Twitter fingers.
There is still a third of the country, however, who are blind to his pattern of prevarication and diligent deception.
Last night’s tweet from the White House strained credulity beyond even what is typical for the most dedicated falsifier in presidential history.
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump. Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial!
On a day where the unseasonably warm temperature in the nation’s capital hit as high as 68 degrees, the White House decided to post this obviously erroneous photo and caption.
First snow of the year! ❄ pic.twitter.com/kgSLQX6QxK — The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 13, 2020
The reaction on Twitter was swift and furious.
It's 52 degrees. It's snowing in DC to the same extent that Trump is innocent. These folks aren't even competent at lying. https://t.co/yviQcyY5B0 — Neal Katyal (@neal_katyal) January 13, 2020
This is the dumbest lie and I am furious. https://t.co/eeRJpRzlP7 — Emily Keller (@egkeller) January 13, 2020
Early entry for stupidest Trump lie of 2020. https://t.co/amEKgkjveV — JoeMyGod (@JoeMyGod) January 13, 2020
This White House lied about rain at Trump's inauguration. They used a Sharpie to change a weather map to lie about a hurricane headed to Alabama. And they continue to lie about climate change. Why wouldn't they lie about the first snow of the year when it's 53 degrees in DC? pic.twitter.com/QmunL6ySjA — Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) January 13, 2020
First snow of the year! ❄ pic.twitter.com/VF0IpARVtn — Matt Ford (@fordm) January 13, 2020
https://twitter.com/Cosmichomicide/status/1216554341940723712?s=20
It was 70 degrees in DC. WTF is wrong with these people. They literally lie about the dumbest things. https://t.co/Lt9mXUw6d0 — Josh Kail (@THATJoshKail) January 13, 2020
This is indeed the truest form of gaslighting, to lie about the stupidest, most disprovable thing, only to cause division and prove to the most suggestible in society that there are no such things as objective facts. https://t.co/OxJMCtUuse — E.J. Kalafarski (@ejkalafarski) January 13, 2020
With over 15 thousand lies to his credit — or more properly, his disgrace — the Trump White House’s misleading tweet about the current weather is among the least significant of the president’s statements that are totally disconnected from reality.
Luckily, the nation has yet to reach that point of no return where such blatant misrepresentations of the truth are simply accepted as the norm and not even worth pointing out.
In case anyone was interested in the actual truth, the first snow in Washington DC actually came several days earlier, last Tuesday, when the photo tweeted out by the White House was apparently taken, according to HuffPost.
Perhaps the photo got caught up in the classification process while the administration decided whether it was subject to executive privilege.
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Original reporting by Ed Mazza at HuffPost.
Vinnie Longobardo Managing Editor Vinnie Longobardo is the Managing Editor of Occupy Democrats. He's a 35-year veteran of the TV, mobile & internet industries, specializing in start-ups and the international media business. His passions are politics, music, and art. Latest Posts


occupydemocrats--2020-01-13--Trump sparks outrage by sharing photo of Speaker Pelosi photoshopped wearing a hijab

Roughly three years into his presidency , there can be no argument that Donald Trump is a virulent racist .
It ’ s a defining element of his personality and a weaponized aspect of his politics .
At this point , the list has grown so long that it would take ages to exhaustively catalog every bigoted sentiment uttered to date by the man who smeared Mexican immigrants as racists and tried to pass a travel ban on Muslims .
Short of literally saying racial slurs on live television , there aren ’ t many ways left for this president @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deeply ingrained white nationalist sentiments .
In the wake of his dangerous brinksmanship with Iran , Trump seems to have now trained his racist eye on Persians .
The Intercept ’ s Mehdi Hasan pointed out on Twitter that the president retweeted an image of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi ( D-CA ) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer ( D-NY ) photoshopped into traditional Middle Eastern garb with the flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran behind them .
She was edited into a hijab and he was given a turban @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
We know that Trump hates Pelosi and Schumer so his sharing of this image clearly shows that he thinks there is something innately wrong with the way some Iranians dress .
He wouldn ’ t retweet it if he didn ’ t think it was damaging .
It ’ s a disgusting meme that otherizes and mocks Iranians , uses that otherization to imply that all Iranians are terrorists , and then smears the Democratic leaders as terrorists as well .
It relies on ignorance and hatred to work .
Since the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ targeted killing of Quds Force Leader Qasem Soleimani by providing any scrap of evidence that he was indeed planning an “ imminent ” attack like the White House alleges , Trump and the GOP have resorted to completely misrepresenting the Democratic concerns about the assassination .
Democrats concede that Soleimani was an evil man drenched in the blood of countless innocents , but they question whether killing the top Iranian military official was worth the risk of all-out war .
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump .
Add your name to demand he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ turn , Republicans have taken this perfectly reasonably parsed argument and twisted it to claim that Democrats are sad that Soleimani is dead and that the entire party is full of terrorist-sympathizers .
It ’ s the kind of incredibly dense and obviously false narrative that easily takes root in a conservative movement that has been brainwashed by Fox News to believe that liberals literally want to destroy America .
According to CNN ’ s Manu Raju , White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham defended Trump ’ s sharing of the offensive meme @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are “ parroting Iranian talking points ” and “ almost taking the side of terrorists.
” This kind of absurd , bad faith attack is going to be trotted out more and more by this shameful administration as the 2020 election draws closer .
It must be condemned every step of the way .
Trump ’ s escalating racism can not be rewarded with reelection .
What do you think ?

Roughly three years into his presidency, there can be no argument that Donald Trump is a virulent racist. It’s a defining element of his personality and a weaponized aspect of his politics. At this point, the list has grown so long that it would take ages to exhaustively catalog every bigoted sentiment uttered to date by the man who smeared Mexican immigrants as racists and tried to pass a travel ban on Muslims. Short of literally saying racial slurs on live television, there aren’t many ways left for this president to make it clear that he has deeply ingrained white nationalist sentiments.
In the wake of his dangerous brinksmanship with Iran, Trump seems to have now trained his racist eye on Persians. The Intercept’s Mehdi Hasan pointed out on Twitter that the president retweeted an image of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) photoshopped into traditional Middle Eastern garb with the flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran behind them. She was edited into a hijab and he was given a turban to make him look like the Ayatollah.
We know that Trump hates Pelosi and Schumer so his sharing of this image clearly shows that he thinks there is something innately wrong with the way some Iranians dress. He wouldn’t retweet it if he didn’t think it was damaging. It’s a disgusting meme that otherizes and mocks Iranians, uses that otherization to imply that all Iranians are terrorists, and then smears the Democratic leaders as terrorists as well. It relies on ignorance and hatred to work.
Since the Trump administration has failed to justify its targeted killing of Quds Force Leader Qasem Soleimani by providing any scrap of evidence that he was indeed planning an “imminent” attack like the White House alleges, Trump and the GOP have resorted to completely misrepresenting the Democratic concerns about the assassination. Democrats concede that Soleimani was an evil man drenched in the blood of countless innocents, but they question whether killing the top Iranian military official was worth the risk of all-out war.
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump. Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial!
In turn, Republicans have taken this perfectly reasonably parsed argument and twisted it to claim that Democrats are sad that Soleimani is dead and that the entire party is full of terrorist-sympathizers. It’s the kind of incredibly dense and obviously false narrative that easily takes root in a conservative movement that has been brainwashed by Fox News to believe that liberals literally want to destroy America.
According to CNN’s Manu Raju, White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham defended Trump’s sharing of the offensive meme and claimed that the president thinks Democrats are “parroting Iranian talking points” and “almost taking the side of terrorists.” This kind of absurd, bad faith attack is going to be trotted out more and more by this shameful administration as the 2020 election draws closer. It must be condemned every step of the way. Trump’s escalating racism cannot be rewarded with reelection.
WH press secretary Stephanie Grisham defends Trump retweeting a photoshopped image of Schumer and Pelosi next to Iranian flag while wearing Islamic attire, saying on Fox that Trump believes Dems are “parroting Iranian talking points” and “almost taking the side of terrorists” — Manu Raju (@mkraju) January 13, 2020
Staff Report This is a staff report from former Occupy Democrats Editor in Chief Colin Taylor or contributor Rob Haffney. Latest Posts


occupydemocrats--2020-01-13--Trump childishly mocks Booker for dropping out while Democrats shower him with praise

In the end , it may be Donald Trump ’ s sheer meanness that sinks his reelection bid .
After three years of enduring his casual cruelty , misogyny , bigotry , and egocentric disregard for anyone but himself , it ’ s difficult to believe that the American public will sign up for another four years of id-driven negativity and relentless divisiveness .
Trump exhibited today another prime example of his natural tendencies to choose the least graceful , most offensive option when faced with a situation that he could either have remained blissfully silent about or at least @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a tennis match would be to their vanquished opponent .
The example in question is the president ’ s tweeted reaction to the announcement by Senator Cory Booker ( D-NJ ) that he was dropping out of the race for the Democratic nomination for president .
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump .
Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial !
Whatever your opinion about Senator Booker and his qualifications for the presidency , his decision to leave the race after failing to generate the same level of enthusiasm @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the other candidates surely doesn ’ t deserve the malevolent sarcasm and vicious mocking that Trump insisted on leveling at the retreating potential opponent .
Contrast the president ’ s mean-spirited reveling in the defeat of one of his now-vanquished rivals for his current job with the responses from some of Senator Booker ’ s opponents in the race for the Democratic party ’ s presidential nomination .
The graciousness and genuine warmth expressed by each of Booker ’ s former rivals makes Trump ’ s crass tweet seem even more repulsive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a vacuum .
With Trump ’ s erratic and anti-social behavior generating ever greater levels of disgust in the American electorate , it ’ s difficult to see how he can win another election without massive voter suppression , foreign interference , and dirty tricks — his winning template from his 2016 victory — if , that is , he makes it past his impeachment trial .
What do you think ?

In the end, it may be Donald Trump’s sheer meanness that sinks his reelection bid.
After three years of enduring his casual cruelty, misogyny, bigotry, and egocentric disregard for anyone but himself, it’s difficult to believe that the American public will sign up for another four years of id-driven negativity and relentless divisiveness.
Trump exhibited today another prime example of his natural tendencies to choose the least graceful, most offensive option when faced with a situation that he could either have remained blissfully silent about or at least respond as cordially as the winner of a tennis match would be to their vanquished opponent.
The example in question is the president’s tweeted reaction to the announcement by Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) that he was dropping out of the race for the Democratic nomination for president.
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump. Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial!
It’s with a full heart that I share this news—I’m suspending my campaign for president. To my team, supporters, and everyone who gave me a shot—thank you. I am so proud of what we built, and I feel nothing but faith in what we can accomplish together. pic.twitter.com/Fxvc549vlJ — Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) January 13, 2020
Whatever your opinion about Senator Booker and his qualifications for the presidency, his decision to leave the race after failing to generate the same level of enthusiasm in an overcrowded primary field as some of the other candidates surely doesn’t deserve the malevolent sarcasm and vicious mocking that Trump insisted on leveling at the retreating potential opponent.
Really Big Breaking News (Kidding): Booker, who was in zero polling territory, just dropped out of the Democrat Presidential Primary Race. Now I can rest easy tonight. I was sooo concerned that I would someday have to go head to head with him! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 13, 2020
Contrast the president’s mean-spirited reveling in the defeat of one of his now-vanquished rivals for his current job with the responses from some of Senator Booker’s opponents in the race for the Democratic party’s presidential nomination.
Thank you, @CoryBooker. You've always been a powerful voice for justice and equality, and you've made this primary stronger. I know you will continue to be a leader in the fight to defeat Donald Trump and build a stronger future for America. pic.twitter.com/5rAwSS2wPR — Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) January 13, 2020
I will miss my friend Cory Booker so much on the campaign trail. We were friends before this started and are even better friends now. The one thing about Cory—he never stops standing up for what is right…so, the best is yet to come! pic.twitter.com/XBv2OYTucv — Amy Klobuchar (@amyklobuchar) January 13, 2020
Thank you @CoryBooker for running an inspiring campaign to make this the country based on love and justice we know we can become. I look forward to working together to defeat Trump, end his hatred, and lift up working people everywhere. pic.twitter.com/Zs7TlFNlub — Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) January 13, 2020
https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1216756484048138240?s=20
Senator Booker's commitment and love for the country is clear. He’s right that uniting as a people is how we tackle our biggest challenges. I know he's going to continue to lead in this fight. — Tom Steyer (@TomSteyer) January 13, 2020
Cory, you campaigned with joy and heart, and instead of just talking about bringing people together, you did it every day. You made our politics better just by running. Grateful to you and looking forward to your continued leadership. — Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) January 13, 2020
The graciousness and genuine warmth expressed by each of Booker’s former rivals makes Trump’s crass tweet seem even more repulsive than if it had been issued in a vacuum.
With Trump’s erratic and anti-social behavior generating ever greater levels of disgust in the American electorate, it’s difficult to see how he can win another election without massive voter suppression, foreign interference, and dirty tricks — his winning template from his 2016 victory — if, that is, he makes it past his impeachment trial.
Follow Vinnie Longobardo on Twitter.
Vinnie Longobardo Managing Editor Vinnie Longobardo is the Managing Editor of Occupy Democrats. He's a 35-year veteran of the TV, mobile & internet industries, specializing in start-ups and the international media business. His passions are politics, music, and art. Latest Posts


occupydemocrats--2020-01-13--Trump brags that it “doesn’t really matter” if he lied about Iranian threat to America

Luckily , for the people of the United States , Iraq , Iran and frankly the entire world , Donald Trump ’ s reckless to suddenly assassinate Iranian Quds Force Leader Qasem Soleimani has not thrust us into a brand new wasteful and tragic war .
In the face of reasonable criticism that the White House took an unnecessary risk with the targeted killing .
the administration pushed the narrative the Soleimani was actively planning to carry out an attack or attacks against American forces .
Since then , they have failed to provide any evidence or even specify what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some have begun to suspect that there was no real impetus for the attack beyond Trump ’ s own personal desire to distract from the impeachment currently tanking his presidency .
We know for certain that Trump is a man than willing to lie about anything if it ’ s politically advantageous in some way and his decision to completely shred his administration ’ s credibility over the past fear years is bearing bitter fruit for him now .
Over the weekend , Secretary of Defense Mark Esper went on TV and gave @ @ @ @ @ @ @ strike , during which he refused to provide any evidence supporting the White House ’ s claim of an impending attack .
It was such a transparently dishonest moment that it needs to be seen to be believed .
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump .
Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial !
This morning , Trump took to Twitter to claim that the “ Fake News Media and their Democrat Partners ” are trying hard to ascertain whether the “ future attack ” by Soleimani was “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with the president ’ s quotation emphasis on the word imminent showing how little he cares about the details of his official story .
Trump insisted that his team agreed the attack was indeed about to happen but that “ it doesn ’ t really matter because of his horrible past.
” While it ’ s hardly a tragedy that a man as violent and vile as Soleimani is dead , it does matter that the Trump administration tell the truth about an assassination that brought us to the edge of war .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ whether or not Soleimani was planning an “ imminent ” strike then the White House wouldn ’ t have claimed he was in the first place .
Now , they ’ ve been caught in an unconvincing narrative and want to backpedal and obfuscate .
They must be held accountable and their lies , if they are indeed lies , must be exposed .
The American people have a right to the truth , regardless of what their crooked , mendacious president believes .
What do you think ?

Luckily, for the people of the United States, Iraq, Iran and frankly the entire world, Donald Trump’s reckless to suddenly assassinate Iranian Quds Force Leader Qasem Soleimani has not thrust us into a brand new wasteful and tragic war.
In the face of reasonable criticism that the White House took an unnecessary risk with the targeted killing. the administration pushed the narrative the Soleimani was actively planning to carry out an attack or attacks against American forces. Since then, they have failed to provide any evidence or even specify what the alleged targets were.
Naturally, some have begun to suspect that there was no real impetus for the attack beyond Trump’s own personal desire to distract from the impeachment currently tanking his presidency. We know for certain that Trump is a man than willing to lie about anything if it’s politically advantageous in some way and his decision to completely shred his administration’s credibility over the past fear years is bearing bitter fruit for him now.
Over the weekend, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper went on TV and gave an embarrassingly evasive interview about the Soleimani strike, during which he refused to provide any evidence supporting the White House’s claim of an impending attack. It was such a transparently dishonest moment that it needs to be seen to be believed.
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump. Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial!
This morning, Trump took to Twitter to claim that the “Fake News Media and their Democrat Partners” are trying hard to ascertain whether the “future attack” by Soleimani was “‘imminent’ or not,” with the president’s quotation emphasis on the word imminent showing how little he cares about the details of his official story. Trump insisted that his team agreed the attack was indeed about to happen but that “it doesn’t really matter because of his horrible past.”
While it’s hardly a tragedy that a man as violent and vile as Soleimani is dead, it does matter that the Trump administration tell the truth about an assassination that brought us to the edge of war.
If it really didn’t matter whether or not Soleimani was planning an “imminent” strike then the White House wouldn’t have claimed he was in the first place. Now, they’ve been caught in an unconvincing narrative and want to backpedal and obfuscate. They must be held accountable and their lies, if they are indeed lies, must be exposed. The American people have a right to the truth, regardless of what their crooked, mendacious president believes.
The Fake News Media and their Democrat Partners are working hard to determine whether or not the future attack by terrorist Soleimani was “imminent” or not, & was my team in agreement. The answer to both is a strong YES., but it doesn’t really matter because of his horrible past! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 13, 2020
Staff Report This is a staff report from former Occupy Democrats Editor in Chief Colin Taylor or contributor Rob Haffney. Latest Posts


occupydemocrats--2020-01-14--McConnell admits defeat in plot to dismiss impeachment, trial to begin next week

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell ( R-KY ) is throwing in the towel in his attempts to immediately dismiss the articles of impeachment for Donald Trump that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ( D-CA ) is planning on forwarding this week to the Senate for trial .
It ’ s not for a lack of trying .
McConnell admitted in a press conference today that the horrendous optics of exonerating the president without an iota of debate and testimony from direct witnesses to Trump ’ s actions — including that of his former National Security Advisor John Bolton who announced last @ @ @ @ @ @ @ testify if subpoenaed — has spooked enough Republican Senators potentially vulnerable in their reelection bids that he simply doesn ’ t have the votes to ram such a partisan measure through successfully , much to his apparent chagrin .
The GOP Majority Leader also announced that the impeachment trial was most likely to begin on the Senate floor as soon as next Tuesday .
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump .
Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial !
In the meantime , McConnell said that he would take @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the trial .
McConnell seems prepared for the eventuality that witnesses will be called to testify in the proceedings but still deferred a final decision until the trial is underway .
The Majority Leader warned Democrats that they won ’ t be the only ones seeking testimony during the impeachment trial , hinting that Republicans may try to subpoena former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter to try to prove that Trump was legitimately trying to expose corruption in Ukraine and that the former Soviet republic was responsible for the 2016 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s Kremlin pals , as every U.S. intelligence agency has determined .
While the setback for Republican leadership hoping for a rapid exoneration of the president with little collateral damage to his reelection prospects — or their own — is sure to be disappointing to the president and his defenders , the reality is that both the witness testimony and the public reaction to it must be overwhelmingly devastating to Trump and the other Administration players involved to overcome the 2/3rds majority required to vote for the president ’ s removal from office @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that additional testimony will be able to tip the balance in their favor , if not to point of removing him from office immediately , then at least to damage Trump and his political acolytes sufficiently to ensure that his reelection will be a struggle that he will be unable to overcome after the embarrassment of the impeachment trial ’ s revelations .
Let ’ s hope that their political calculus is more accurate than McConnell ’ s .
So far it has proven to be much closer to the mark than the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
What do you think ?

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is throwing in the towel in his attempts to immediately dismiss the articles of impeachment for Donald Trump that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) is planning on forwarding this week to the Senate for trial.
It’s not for a lack of trying.
McConnell admitted in a press conference today that the horrendous optics of exonerating the president without an iota of debate and testimony from direct witnesses to Trump’s actions — including that of his former National Security Advisor John Bolton who announced last week that he would be willing to testify if subpoenaed — has spooked enough Republican Senators potentially vulnerable in their reelection bids that he simply doesn’t have the votes to ram such a partisan measure through successfully, much to his apparent chagrin.
“There is little to no sentiment in the Republican caucus for the motion to dismiss,” McConnell told the assembled reporters.
The GOP Majority Leader also announced that the impeachment trial was most likely to begin on the Senate floor as soon as next Tuesday.
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump. Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial!
In the meantime, McConnell said that he would take the administrative steps necessary to prepare for the trial.
.@Senatemajldr on impeachment timeline: "preliminary steps here this week which could well include the Chief Justice coming over and swearing in members of the Senate and some other kind of housekeeping measures…which would set us up to begin the actual trial next Tuesday." pic.twitter.com/KBJHUHncpL — CSPAN (@cspan) January 14, 2020
McConnell seems prepared for the eventuality that witnesses will be called to testify in the proceedings but still deferred a final decision until the trial is underway.
The Majority Leader warned Democrats that they won’t be the only ones seeking testimony during the impeachment trial, hinting that Republicans may try to subpoena former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter to try to prove that Trump was legitimately trying to expose corruption in Ukraine and that the former Soviet republic was responsible for the 2016 election meddling rather than the president’s Kremlin pals, as every U.S. intelligence agency has determined.
McConnell on witness question: "We’ll be dealing with the witness issue at the appropriate time into the trial…when you get to that issue, I can’t imagine that only the witnesses that Democrats want to call would be called." — Heather Caygle (@heatherscope) January 14, 2020
While the setback for Republican leadership hoping for a rapid exoneration of the president with little collateral damage to his reelection prospects — or their own — is sure to be disappointing to the president and his defenders, the reality is that both the witness testimony and the public reaction to it must be overwhelmingly devastating to Trump and the other Administration players involved to overcome the 2/3rds majority required to vote for the president’s removal from office.
Democrats are counting on the fact that additional testimony will be able to tip the balance in their favor, if not to point of removing him from office immediately, then at least to damage Trump and his political acolytes sufficiently to ensure that his reelection will be a struggle that he will be unable to overcome after the embarrassment of the impeachment trial’s revelations.
Let’s hope that their political calculus is more accurate than McConnell’s. So far it has proven to be much closer to the mark than the Majority Leader has been able to reach.
Follow Vinnie Longobardo on Twitter.
Original reporting by David Edwards at RawStory.
Vinnie Longobardo Managing Editor Vinnie Longobardo is the Managing Editor of Occupy Democrats. He's a 35-year veteran of the TV, mobile & internet industries, specializing in start-ups and the international media business. His passions are politics, music, and art. Latest Posts


occupydemocrats--2020-01-14--Oakland cops bring out assault rifles and armored vehicles to evict 4 Black homeless mothers

Heavily armed police officers showed up with assault rifles and armored vehicles to forcibly evict several homeless mothers and their children from an otherwise unoccupied home in West Oakland earlier today , according to the San Francisco Chronicle .
The SWAT-like squad of officers arrived around 5:15 AM to remove the harmless women and children seeking shelter and activists are understandably outraged .
Three of the four women who were living in the house were present for the raid and were arrested , as well as a man found outside .
They are 25-year-old Jesse Turner , 46 year-year-old Tolani @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The gentleman was 28-year-old Walter Baker .
The women had been occupying the building for the past few months and are part of the group Moms 4 Housing , an organization that pushes for housing as an essential right and which advocates for reclaiming vacant houses from “ the big banks and real estate speculators.
” This eviction came after a judge ruled that the mothers in question had no legal right to stay in the house and must be evicted .
Authorities sent in a robot to inspect the house before entering @ @ @ @ @ @ @ police boarded up the house with plywood .
“ They came in like an Army for mothers and babies .
We have the right to housing .
This is just the beginning , ” said Dominique Walker , who leads the group .
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump .
Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial !
The police were met outside the house with demonstrators chanting for the release of the mothers .
“ If you are not angry , you are not paying attention .
They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for demanding to shelter their children .
This is insane !
” said activist Carole Fife .
Many of the activists remained even after the women were evicted and banners were unfurled in support of the mothers .
The Twitter account for Moms 4 Housing has shared images and videos of the police presence as well as those who showed up in support of the moms .
Numerous other accounts have also been sharing images and clips in solidarity .
The house is owned by Wedgewood Properties .
The company has stated that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ temporary housing as well as the cost of moving .
Eventually , Wedgewood hopes to fix up the house and sell it on the market with an eye towards sharing the profits with Shelter 37 , a nonprofit whose website describes its goal as seeking “ to improve the overall well being of children and young adults whose lives have been affected or disrupted by crime , violence , or abandonment and as a result , are more at-risk of turning to gangs , crime , drugs , or becoming withdrawn , antisocial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , who lived in the house but who wasn ’ t present for the raid , isn ’ t impressed by Wedgewood ’ s token offer and called it an “ insult.
” “ That ’ s no offer .
We offered to buy the house — that ’ s what we wanted to do , ” said Walker .
“ This is the type of forces that we are up against when we are just trying to survive .
We are just trying to live .
We just want shelter for our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ go to jail for that , then take me , ” she added .
This incident represents just the latest overreach of an increasingly militarized police presence in the United States .
Clearly , these women were not a threat and the decision to employ such excessive armaments against them is part of a disturbing trend that can only be described as the mobilization of state forces against the must vulnerable members of society .
If you ’ re outraged as you should be , consider donating to Moms 4 Housing here .
@ @ @ @ @

Heavily armed police officers showed up with assault rifles and armored vehicles to forcibly evict several homeless mothers and their children from an otherwise unoccupied home in West Oakland earlier today, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. The SWAT-like squad of officers arrived around 5:15 AM to remove the harmless women and children seeking shelter and activists are understandably outraged.
Three of the four women who were living in the house were present for the raid and were arrested, as well as a man found outside. They are 25-year-old Jesse Turner, 46 year-year-old Tolani King, and 38-year-old Misty Cross. The gentleman was 28-year-old Walter Baker.
The women had been occupying the building for the past few months and are part of the group Moms 4 Housing, an organization that pushes for housing as an essential right and which advocates for reclaiming vacant houses from “the big banks and real estate speculators.” This eviction came after a judge ruled that the mothers in question had no legal right to stay in the house and must be evicted.
Authorities sent in a robot to inspect the house before entering and after the eviction was complete, police boarded up the house with plywood.
“They came in like an Army for mothers and babies. We have the right to housing. This is just the beginning,” said Dominique Walker, who leads the group.
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump. Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial!
The police were met outside the house with demonstrators chanting for the release of the mothers. “If you are not angry, you are not paying attention. They should not be in handcuffs right now for demanding to shelter their children. This is insane!” said activist Carole Fife.
Many of the activists remained even after the women were evicted and banners were unfurled in support of the mothers. The Twitter account for Moms 4 Housing has shared images and videos of the police presence as well as those who showed up in support of the moms. Numerous other accounts have also been sharing images and clips in solidarity.
They came armed to the teeth for the @moms4housing pic.twitter.com/Fy1DxRiqbI — Indybay (@Indybay) January 14, 2020
Banners back up in front of boarded up #MomsHouse. pic.twitter.com/uz74M5zlqF — Indybay (@Indybay) January 14, 2020
Tanks. Swat. Battering rams. To forcibly remove @moms4housing from an EMPTY home. https://t.co/SJT6r4CwxF — Tia Oso (@Tia_Oso) January 14, 2020
The house is owned by Wedgewood Properties. The company has stated that it intends to help the mothers afford temporary housing as well as the cost of moving. Eventually, Wedgewood hopes to fix up the house and sell it on the market with an eye towards sharing the profits with Shelter 37, a nonprofit whose website describes its goal as seeking “to improve the overall well being of children and young adults whose lives have been affected or disrupted by crime, violence, or abandonment and as a result, are more at-risk of turning to gangs, crime, drugs, or becoming withdrawn, antisocial, or socially inept.”
Dominique Walker, who lived in the house but who wasn’t present for the raid, isn’t impressed by Wedgewood’s token offer and called it an “insult.”
“That’s no offer. We offered to buy the house — that’s what we wanted to do,” said Walker. “This is the type of forces that we are up against when we are just trying to survive. We are just trying to live. We just want shelter for our children, and if we have to go to jail for that, then take me,” she added.
This incident represents just the latest overreach of an increasingly militarized police presence in the United States. Clearly, these women were not a threat and the decision to employ such excessive armaments against them is part of a disturbing trend that can only be described as the mobilization of state forces against the must vulnerable members of society.
If you’re outraged as you should be, consider donating to Moms 4 Housing here.
Staff Report This is a staff report from former Occupy Democrats Editor in Chief Colin Taylor or contributor Rob Haffney. Latest Posts


occupydemocrats--2020-01-14--Giuliani’s Ukraine scandal associate taunts Trump family with bizarre “music video”

You have to hand it to Joseph Bondy , the attorney for Lev Parnas , the indicted associate of Rudy Giuliani who is now trying to cooperate with the Democrats seeking Trump ’ s removal from office in order to seek leniency in the charges of campaign finance law violations lodged against him .
Bondy has been trying to get Congress to call his client as a witness in Trump ’ s impeachment trial and has managed to get permission from the judge overseeing Parnas ’ case to allow him to deliver the copious amount of data gleaned from his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the House Intelligence Committee to convince them of Parnas ’ value as a direct witness in the Ukraine shakedown schemes concocted by Trump ’ s cabal of cronies , presumably in exchange for favorable consideration in his client ’ s case .
Bondy went on Twitter yesterday to announce that the judge had approved an expansion of the materials he could deliver to the committee , using the hashtags # LetLevSpeak and # LevRemembers to hammer home his contention that Parnas has a potentially valuable story to tell if allowed to testify .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ that simple press release in the ensuing hours , however , launching a teasing social media campaign that includes photos from Parnas ’ phones that feature smiling portraits of Republican Trump administration luminaries embracing his client .
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump .
Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial !
Even more cleverly , he edited the shots together into a pair of music videos that he has been judiciously releasing on Twitter in a staged schedule for maximum impact .
His first post from the newly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ warmly embracing Trump-supporting Congressman Steve Scalise ( R-LA ) in response to a tweet Scalise posted accusing the Democrats of staging an “ impeachment charade ” as a political weapon .
It was Bondy ’ s subsequent post of a montage of photos featuring Lev Parnas and a cast of Trump administration figures cut to MC Hammer ’ s “ U Can ’ t Touch This ” that really caught the public ’ s attention , however .
Labeled with an admonition to “ call the witnesses , ” the video features shots @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the desk of former House Rules Committee Chairman Pete Sessions ( R-TX ) ; giving a thumbs-up signal as he poses with President Trump in the White House ; embracing Trump mouthpiece Rudy Giuliani at a black-tie affair ; a shot of a dais where name cards for both Trump and Parnas are placed side by side ; and , finally , a photo of Parnas wearing a baseball jersey emblazoned with Sessions name .
The connection to former Representative Sessions who was ousted from Congress in the 2018 “ Blue Wave ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a letter as House Rules Committee chairman calling for the removal of the then-Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch after a meeting with Parnas and his partner Igor Fruman .
Sessions has been subpoenaed to testify before the grand jury investigating Parnas and Fruman ’ s work with Giuliani .
The reaction to this first video montage was so overwhelming that Bondy released a follow-up this morning — adding the caption “ hear the sworn testimony ” to his previous “ call the witnesses ” plea — with a score featuring the old Sister @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” an appropriate choice for the montage of photos featuring his client partying with Trump and various members of his immediate family .
After viewing the photos that Bondy has provided to the public , you can see why he was so angry that Trump declared : The Judas-like denial by Trump so angered the Giuliani accomplice that he immediately decided to offer to cooperate in the impeachment investigations against the president , an offer yet to be accepted by the Democrats , and turning Parnas from an insider in Trump circles into @ @ @ @ @ @ @ publication of these photos demonstrating the interactions between Parnas and the president and his family , Trump ’ s denials become even more unbelievable and Parnas ’ value as a potential witness has increased .
It seems like Lev Parnas is getting his money ’ s worth from his media-savvy attorney .
What do you think ?

You have to hand it to Joseph Bondy, the attorney for Lev Parnas, the indicted associate of Rudy Giuliani who is now trying to cooperate with the Democrats seeking Trump’s removal from office in order to seek leniency in the charges of campaign finance law violations lodged against him.
Bondy has been trying to get Congress to call his client as a witness in Trump’s impeachment trial and has managed to get permission from the judge overseeing Parnas’ case to allow him to deliver the copious amount of data gleaned from his client’s three mobile phones to the House Intelligence Committee to convince them of Parnas’ value as a direct witness in the Ukraine shakedown schemes concocted by Trump’s cabal of cronies, presumably in exchange for favorable consideration in his client’s case.
Bondy went on Twitter yesterday to announce that the judge had approved an expansion of the materials he could deliver to the committee, using the hashtags #LetLevSpeak and #LevRemembers to hammer home his contention that Parnas has a potentially valuable story to tell if allowed to testify.
The dutiful attorney has gone far beyond that simple press release in the ensuing hours, however, launching a teasing social media campaign that includes photos from Parnas’ phones that feature smiling portraits of Republican Trump administration luminaries embracing his client.
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump. Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial!
Even more cleverly, he edited the shots together into a pair of music videos that he has been judiciously releasing on Twitter in a staged schedule for maximum impact.
His first post from the newly available materials was a photo of Parnas warmly embracing Trump-supporting Congressman Steve Scalise (R-LA) in response to a tweet Scalise posted accusing the Democrats of staging an “impeachment charade” as a political weapon.
It was Bondy’s subsequent post of a montage of photos featuring Lev Parnas and a cast of Trump administration figures cut to MC Hammer’s “U Can’t Touch This” that really caught the public’s attention, however.
Labeled with an admonition to “call the witnesses,” the video features shots of Parnas sitting with a gavel at the desk of former House Rules Committee Chairman Pete Sessions (R-TX); giving a thumbs-up signal as he poses with President Trump in the White House; embracing Trump mouthpiece Rudy Giuliani at a black-tie affair; a shot of a dais where name cards for both Trump and Parnas are placed side by side; and, finally, a photo of Parnas wearing a baseball jersey emblazoned with Sessions name.
The connection to former Representative Sessions who was ousted from Congress in the 2018 “Blue Wave” midterm elections is significant because Sessions wrote a letter as House Rules Committee chairman calling for the removal of the then-Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch after a meeting with Parnas and his partner Igor Fruman. Sessions has been subpoenaed to testify before the grand jury investigating Parnas and Fruman’s work with Giuliani.
The reaction to this first video montage was so overwhelming that Bondy released a follow-up this morning — adding the caption “hear the sworn testimony” to his previous “call the witnesses” plea — with a score featuring the old Sister Sledge hit “We Are Family,” an appropriate choice for the montage of photos featuring his client partying with Trump and various members of his immediate family.
After viewing the photos that Bondy has provided to the public, you can see why he was so angry that Trump declared:
“I don’t know them. I don’t know about them. I don’t know what they do … Maybe they were clients of Rudy. You’d have to ask Rudy.”
The Judas-like denial by Trump so angered the Giuliani accomplice that he immediately decided to offer to cooperate in the impeachment investigations against the president, an offer yet to be accepted by the Democrats, and turning Parnas from an insider in Trump circles into a potentially dangerous adversary.
With the publication of these photos demonstrating the interactions between Parnas and the president and his family, Trump’s denials become even more unbelievable and Parnas’ value as a potential witness has increased.
It seems like Lev Parnas is getting his money’s worth from his media-savvy attorney.
Follow Vinnie Longobardo on Twitter.
Vinnie Longobardo Managing Editor Vinnie Longobardo is the Managing Editor of Occupy Democrats. He's a 35-year veteran of the TV, mobile & internet industries, specializing in start-ups and the international media business. His passions are politics, music, and art. Latest Posts


occupydemocrats--2020-01-15--Newly released texts from Giuliani collaborator appear to show them stalking Amb. Yovanovich

On Tuesday afternoon , a flurry of stunning new documents related to the impeachment inquiry were released to the media .
They appear to detail the president ’ s possible involvement in a plot to threaten and intimidate the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine , Maria Yovanovich , in order to clear the way for Rudy Giuliani and his cronies to set up contrived investigations of Joe Biden and his family to use as a political weapon in 2020 .
We already knew that the president ’ s consigliere Rudy Giuliani and his henchmen , Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and ultimately remove Maria Yovanovich from her post as Ambassador to Ukraine because she was obstructing his efforts to arrange investigations into Joe Biden and his son Hunter .
Newly released text messages between Lev Parnas and Connecticut Republican House candidate Robert F. Hyde appear to show them discussing the surveillance of Yovanovich while she was still in Ukraine and an ominous offer to “ help ” for a “ price ” because “ guess you can do anything in Ukraine with money… what I was told.
” Parnas responded : “ LOL.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ by who she believed to be the White House to get on the next plane home out of concern for her own safety .
Even more disturbingly , the President himself ominously bragged to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenksy on one of their infamous calls that Yovanovich was going to be “ going through some things ” — which suggests that he knew about the plans to intimidate or at least publicly smear her himself .
Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman were arrested trying to sneak out of the country last October and charged @ @ @ @ @ @ @ $ 325,000 payment to a pro-Trump Super PAC and for working with a Ukrainian politician to influence U.S. politics .
That money is suspected to be part of a seven-figure ad campaign made on behalf of Texas Republican Rep. Pete Sessions in return for his leading the Yovanovich recall efforts in Congress .
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump .
Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial !
After Trump publicly disavowed Lev Parnas and claimed that he didn ’ t “ know him ” despite being in multiple @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would be better off cooperating with federal authorities .
He is doing so with surprising and surreal enthusiasm , even having his lawyer post these deeply weird music videos that appear to show him taunting the president about his testimony .
After these explosive revelations , it is clear that there is still much more to this story that needs to be told — but if anything carries enough gravity to convince Republicans in the Senate to allow more witnesses to come forward , the possibility of a threat on the life of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the President should do it .
Original reporting by Sam Brodey at the Daily Beast .
What do you think ?

On Tuesday afternoon, a flurry of stunning new documents related to the impeachment inquiry were released to the media.
They appear to detail the president’s possible involvement in a plot to threaten and intimidate the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Maria Yovanovich, in order to clear the way for Rudy Giuliani and his cronies to set up contrived investigations of Joe Biden and his family to use as a political weapon in 2020.
We already knew that the president’s consigliere Rudy Giuliani and his henchmen, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, had spearheaded the successful campaign to smear and ultimately remove Maria Yovanovich from her post as Ambassador to Ukraine because she was obstructing his efforts to arrange investigations into Joe Biden and his son Hunter.
Newly released text messages between Lev Parnas and Connecticut Republican House candidate Robert F. Hyde appear to show them discussing the surveillance of Yovanovich while she was still in Ukraine and an ominous offer to “help” for a “price” because “guess you can do anything in Ukraine with money… what I was told.”
Newly released Lev Parnas texts show Robert F. Hyde, GOP congressional candidate in Connecticut, claiming to be surveilling Marie Yovanovitch, then US ambassador to Ukraine https://t.co/VkI9nrRbJj pic.twitter.com/fzUHhGB36x — Jon Swaine (@jonswaine) January 14, 2020
McConnell admitted coordinating impeachment with Trump. Add your name to demand he recuse himself from the trial!
Parnas responded: “LOL.” Yovanovich would later be mysteriously told by who she believed to be the White House to get on the next plane home out of concern for her own safety.
Wow. Texts from Giuliani cronies, just released by House, are incredibly disturbing. One text discusses unsavory characters in Ukraine willing to "help" with Yovanovitch for "a price" A few weeks later Yovanovitch was told to leave immediately over concerns about her safety pic.twitter.com/kh00CMXFW0 — Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) January 14, 2020
Even more disturbingly, the President himself ominously bragged to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenksy on one of their infamous calls that Yovanovich was going to be “going through some things” — which suggests that he knew about the plans to intimidate or at least publicly smear her himself.
This is absolutely nuts. Was Trump part of a conspiracy to do harm to a US ambassador? https://t.co/dRWOZkpvMj — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 14, 2020
Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman were arrested trying to sneak out of the country last October and charged with felony campaign finance violations over a $325,000 payment to a pro-Trump Super PAC and for working with a Ukrainian politician to influence U.S. politics. That money is suspected to be part of a seven-figure ad campaign made on behalf of Texas Republican Rep. Pete Sessions in return for his leading the Yovanovich recall efforts in Congress.
After Trump publicly disavowed Lev Parnas and claimed that he didn’t “know him” despite being in multiple pictures with him, Parnas decided he would be better off cooperating with federal authorities. He is doing so with surprising and surreal enthusiasm, even having his lawyer post these deeply weird music videos that appear to show him taunting the president about his testimony.
After these explosive revelations, it is clear that there is still much more to this story that needs to be told — but if anything carries enough gravity to convince Republicans in the Senate to allow more witnesses to come forward, the possibility of a threat on the life of a U.S. ambassador by minions linked to the President should do it.
Original reporting by Sam Brodey at the Daily Beast.
Colin Taylor Opinion columnist and former editor-in-chief of Occupy Democrats. He graduated from Bennington College with a Bachelor's degree in history and political science. He now focuses on advancing the cause of social justice and equality in America. Latest Posts