Donald Trump signs pardon for former Dick Cheney chief of staff Scooter Libby. Wait, what?

Wait, who pardoned me?

Courtesy of ABC News: 

President Donald Trump is poised to pardon Scooter J. Libby, the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, according to sources familiar with the president’s thinking.

The president has already signed off on the pardon, which is something he has been considering for several months, sources told ABC News. 

The move would mark another controversial pardon for Trump and could raise questions as an increasing number of the president’s political allies have landed themselves in legal jeopardy. The White House has repeatedly said that no pardons are currently on the table for people caught up in the Russia investigation.

You may remember that Trump already pardoned Joe Arpaio, which at least made a little more sense than this.

So why would Trump pardon a dude that was convicted of lying to the FBI and obstructing justice during the Bush Administration?

Please, what are you new here?

On the day the President wrongly attacks Comey for being a “leaker and liar” he considers pardoning a convicted leaker and liar, Scooter Libby. This is the President’s way of sending a message to those implicated in the Russia investigation: You have my back and I‘ll have yours.

— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) April 13, 2018

Yeah, what he said.

This is more of Trump's mob boss mentality at work.

"Yeah hey Vinnie, don't youse worry about getting pinched by the coppers. We will have you out in no time. We take care of our own in the Costa Nostra."

Family of slain DNC staffer sues Fox News.

Courtesy of ABC News:

Rich was shot and killed in Washington, D.C., in July 2016. Police said he was shot several times in the back and later died at a local hospital. Rich was 27 years old and worked as a voter-expansion data director for the DNC at the time. 

The May 16, 2017, Fox News article, which allegedly contained "false and fabricated facts," according to the lawsuit, fueled conspiracy theories that Rich was murdered in connection with a massive WikiLeaks data dump of 20,000 DNC emails days after his death. 

In the suit, which was obtained by ABC News, Rich's parents, Joel and Mary Rich, claim that Fox News investigative reporter Malia Zimmerman and Fox News commenter Ed Butowsky reached out to the family under false pretenses to support stories that Seth Rich leaked DNC emails to WikiLeaks. 

The lawsuit claims that Fox News, Zimmerman and Butowsky are liable for the harm caused by the report because they "aided and abetted the intentional infliction of emotional distress" caused by the story about Seth Rich and alleges that Fox News provided with a national platform to develop what the lawsuit dubs a "sham story."

So to be clear Donald Trump's favorite news outlet is being sued for spreading "fake news."

Nice to see that irony has made a full recovery and is back in the saddle.

But Fox News is not the only Right Wing outlet being sued for spreading conspiracy theories.

Courtesy of The Hill: 

A counterprotester at the deadly white supremacist rally last year in Charlottesville, Va., is suing the media outlet Infowars, its owner Alex Jones and seven others for defamation. 

Georgetown Law’s Civil Rights Clinic filed the lawsuit Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia on behalf of Brennan Gilmore, who alleges that Alex Jones and other far-right supporters, including former Rep. Allen West (R-Fla.), published stories about him that damaged his reputation and mobilized an army of followers to pursue a campaign of harassment and threats against him. 

Gilmore argues he became the target of elaborate online conspiracies that placed him at the center of a “deep-state” plot to stage the Charlottesville attack and destabilize the Trump administration after he posted a video he captured on Twitter of the car attack that killed Heather Heyer and injured 36 others. 

“From Sandy Hook to ‘Pizzagate’ to Charlottesville, Las Vegas and now Parkland, the defendants thrive by inciting devastating real-world consequences with the propaganda and lies they publish as ‘news,’” Gilmore said in a statement. 

“Today, I’m asking a court to hold them responsible for the personal and professional damage their lies have caused me, and, more importantly, to deter them from repeating this dangerous pattern of defamation and intimidation.”

Damn! First YouTube removes advertising from his videos, and now Alex Jones is getting his ass sued off. 

I would say that today was a banner day for truth and justice, would you not agree?

Watching Trump's name being chiseled off of a hotel in Panama may be the best thing you will see all day.

Trump name chiseled off the Trump International Hotel in Panama after weeks of tensions over control of the property. https://t.co/KQuDrUckyr pic.twitter.com/Ph6xlHgwBr

— ABC News (@ABC) March 5, 2018

Courtesy of ABC News: 

More than a dozen police wearing bulletproof vests entered the lobby of the Trump International Hotel in Panama on Monday morning and evicted the Trump Organization’s staff, a move that comes after weeks of simmering tensions over control of the property.

The Trump Organization manages the hotel in the 70-story tower overlooking the Punta Pacifica Peninsula and the new majority owner had gone to court in the U.S. and Panama to evict the company run by President Donald Trump’s sons. There were scuffles as police arrived to carry out the eviction, and Panamanian court officials were present. 

“I am the owner,” said Orestes Fintiklis, who last year obtained control over more than 200 units in the tower, as police and Trump employees pushed and shoved one another. “Love and peace!” 

Fintiklis gained access to the tower’s main office late Monday morning. The colorful property owner told reporters he would not be commenting about the morning’s actions at this point. He then played a song on the piano for the gathered onlookers with lyrics that, when translated, said, “Fascism will not prevail.” 

Okay I could watch that video all day long.

LITERALLY all day long. 

And I predict that this is just the beginning for Trump.

By the time his train wreck of a presidency has gone up in flames, NOBODY is going to want to be his business partner anymore, and his brand will join the likes of Benedict Arnold and Samuel Mudd, the man who treated Abraham Lincoln's assassin for a broken leg, as the very definition of a traitor to this country.

The Mayor of Dallas wants the NRA to keep their convention out of his city.

Courtesy of ABC News: 

One of Dallas' top leaders has urged the National Rifle Association on Monday to find another city to host its annual convention, taking a stand against gun violence in the wake of last week's deadly mass shooting in Florida. 

Dwaine Caraway, mayor pro tem of Dallas, said that the NRA, the nation's largest gun lobby, would be met with "marches and demonstrations" if it went ahead with plans to host the three-day meeting scheduled for May 4-6. 

"It is a tough call when you ask the NRA to reconsider coming to Dallas, but it is putting all citizens first, and getting them to come to the table and elected officials to come to the table and to address this madness now," Caraway told reporters on Monday. "At the end of the day, we need to connect the dots. The NRA needs to step up to the plate, and they need to show leadership." 

"I am saddened the fact that every time that we turn around is some type of gun violence," he added.

If the NRA moved its event, that could cost Dallas as much as $40 million, according to some estimates. 

Caraway, a self-proclaimed strong "believer" in the second amendment, said the NRA has a national responsibility "to address this madness now" as he called on the group to help establish better gun laws. 

"We should not allow people to possess assault rifles and weapons," he said. "While we are worrying about terrorists, we're living in a terrorist society amongst us Americans today."

A city in Texas asking the NRA to stay the hell away from them?

I am not a Biblical scholar but I am pretty sure that is a sign of the End of Days.

Well for gun owners at least. 

Go ahead, somebody tell me again that these students in Florida are just kids, and that they will never have a real impact on the gun debate.

Trump lawyers send cease and desist order to Steve Bannon to keep him from making disparaging remarks that are already in a book by Michael Wolff. Seems a little late to me.

No, no, no, no. no. no!

Courtesy of ABC News: 

The letter comes after excerpts from a forthcoming book by journalist Michael Wolff were made public Wednesday, causing a stir. 

Trump attorney Charles J. Harder of the firm Harder Mirell & Abrams LLP, said in a statement, "This law firm represents President Donald J. Trump and Donald J. Trump for President, Inc. On behalf of our clients, legal notice was issued today to Stephen K. Bannon, that his actions of communicating with author Michael Wolff regarding an upcoming book give rise to numerous legal claims including defamation by libel and slander, and breach of his written confidentiality and non-disparagement agreement with our clients. Legal action is imminent." 

In the letter to Bannon, Harder, writes, "You [Bannon] have breached the Agreement by, among other things, communicating with author Michael Wolff about Mr. Trump, his family members, and the Company, disclosing Confidential Information to Mr. Wolff, and making disparaging statements and in some cases outright defamatory statements to Mr. Wolff about Mr. Trump, his family members, and the Company, knowing that they would be included in Mr. Wolff’s book and publicity surrounding the marketing and sale of his book."

You know a confidentiality agreement may work for keeping things quiet during a campaign, but when Bannon worked in the White House he was then employed by the American people, not Donald J. Trump.  So he was no longer bound by an NDA he may have signed in years past.

And if he sent a letter like this to Bannon, did he also send one to his daughter?

Courtesy of the New York Post:

Daughter Ivanka Trump often makes fun of her dad’s comb-over to friends and delights in explaining how the crazy coiffure comes together, according to “Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House.” 

“She often described the mechanics behind it to friends: an absolutely clean pate — a contained island after scalp-reduction ­surgery — surrounded by a furry circle of hair around the sides and front, from which all ends are drawn up to meet in the center and then swept back and secured by a stiffening spray,” journalist Michael Wolff writes in the book, out Jan. 9. 

“The color, she would point out to comical effect, was from a product called Just for Men — the longer it was left on, the darker it got. Impatience resulted in Trump’s orange-blond hair color.”

Oh that's going to leave a mark.

Apparently at least one of Trump's attorneys realized that you cannot stop a book by attacking its sources.

NEW this am: Trump attorneys send cease-and-desist letter this morning to Wolff and book publisher @HenryHolt demanding they stop publication and issue an apology to @realDonaldTrump for defamatory statements made thus far.

— Carol Leonnig (@CarolLeonnig) January 4, 2018

Okay let's all hold our breath waiting for this to happen.

And if Trump's attorneys want to pursue this line of attack they may want to keep this in mind:

Michael Wolff has tapes to back up quotes in his incendiary book — dozens of hours of them. 

Among the sources he taped, I'm told, are Bannon and former White House deputy chief of staff Katie Walsh. 

I imagine that Wolff and his publishers are desperate for Trump to try and sue them, as that will ensure that this book is a bestseller. 

No the time to stop this book was while Michael Wolff was wandering the White House gathering the information, not after huge chunks have already been leaked to the media.

I can hardly wait to buy my copy.

According to ABC News Michael Flynn will testify that Donald Trump personally directed him to reach out to the Russians before he took office.

Courtesy of ABC News:

Retired Lt. Gen Michael Flynn has promised “full cooperation” in the special counsel’s Russia investigation and, according to a confidant, is prepared to testify that Donald Trump directed him to make contact with the Russians, initially as a way to work together to fight ISIS in Syria.

The stunning turn comes as Flynn pleaded guilty to one count of lying to the FBI about his back-channel negotiations with the Russian ambassador – talks that occurred before Trump took office. The special counsel made the plea agreement public Friday morning. 

The confidant provided ABC News with new details on Friday about Trump’s instructions to Flynn. During the campaign, Trump asked Flynn to be one of a small group of close advisors charged with improving relations in Russia and other hot spots. The source said Trump phoned Flynn shortly after the election to explicitly ask him to “serve as point person on Russia,” and to reach out personally to Russian officials to develop strategies to jointly combat ISIS.

The confidant told ABC News that Flynn felt abandoned by Trump in recent weeks, and told friends about the decision to make the plea deal within the last 24 hours as he grew increasingly concerned about crippling legal costs he would face if he continued to contest the charges. 

“Flynn is very angry,” the confidant told ABC News Friday. “He will cooperate truthfully on any question they ask him.”

Now this is problematic not only because incoming administrations are not supposed to interfere with the current administrations foreign relations, but also becasue Trump has declared that he did not personally instruct Flynn to start these talks.

Remember the official explanation for Flynn being let go was that he lied to Mike Pence about these talks with Russia, but if he was told to conduct them by Trump that excuse falls apart.

Most recently the White House has claimed that Flynn's conversations with the Russians were signed off on by the Obama Administration.

Courtesy of The Hill: 

“They are saying here at the White House that Flynn’s conversations with Sergey Kisylak were quote ‘authorized’ by the Obama administration,” CNN correspondent Jim Acosta said. 

“We should point out, that is something that we have not heard before in terms of a defense from this White House,” he said.

Yeah, well that's complete bullshit since Obama himself warned Trump not to hire Michael Flynn.

This morning a reporter managed to get Trump's response to Michael Flynn's plea deal.

JUST IN: President Trump makes first comments after Michael Flynn's guilty plea.

Reporter: "Are you concerned about what Mike Flynn might tell the special counsel?"

Trump: "No, I'm not." pic.twitter.com/UlDrdPMU2S

— NBC News (@NBCNews) December 2, 2017

It's adorable how hard he is trying to make it seem like all of this is not killing him.

Donald Trump talked to his boss yesterday and received orders to step off and let Russia handle Syria.

Courtesy of ABC News:  

President Donald Trump and Russia's Vladimir Putin discussed efforts to bring peace to war-torn Syria during an hour-plus phone call on Tuesday. Iran, North Korea and Ukraine also were on the agenda, the White House said. 

Trump called it a "great call" Tuesday afternoon as he left the White House to spend Thanksgiving in Florida. Noting the length, he said he and Putin spoke "very strongly about bringing peace to Syria" and "very strongly about North Korea." 

Trump's phone call with the Russian president came a day after Putin met with Syrian President Bashar Assad. Putin hosted Assad at a Black Sea resort ahead of a summit later this week with Russia, Turkey and Iran. Assad was called to Russia to get him to agree to potential peace initiatives drafted by the other three countries, the Kremlin said. 

The Kremlin said Putin briefed Trump in the phone call about his talks with Assad and plans for a political settlement in Syria. Putin also called for coordination of anti-terror efforts with the U.S., the Kremlin said, adding that Afghanistan was also discussed.

"Putin briefed Trump in the phone call about his talks with Assad and plans for a political settlement in Syria."

Did you catch that?

That does not say that Trump and Putin brainstormed the best response to the situation in Syria. That literally says that Putin told Trump what he was fucking doing, and expected Trump to fucking keep his mouth shut about it.

Keep in mind that America and Russia went into Syria originally for different reasons.

President Obama sent the military in to support the rebels who had been gassed by Assad, and Putin sent his military in to support Assad against the "terrorists."

Essentially Putin just bent Trump over and had him grab his ankles on this one.

Courtesy of Politico:

Trump may not care: He has said privately that he considers Syria to be Obama’s failure and that he sees little the U.S. can do about it now, according to a person briefed on one of his conversations. That view was reflected in Trump’s decision earlier this year to cancel a covert CIA program that armed moderate Syrian rebels fighting Assad’s regime.

So now the people of Syria, who America promised to support, have been left to the mercy of two iron fisted dictators who do not give a shit about them.

Robert Mueller is now looking at the Trump Justice Department.

Courtesy of ABC News: 

Special Counsel Robert Mueller's team investigating whether President Donald Trump sought to obstruct a federal inquiry into connections between his presidential campaign and Russian operatives has now directed the Justice Department to turn over a broad array of documents, ABC News has learned.

In particular, Mueller's investigators are keen to obtain emails related to the firing of FBI Director James Comey and the earlier decision of Attorney General Jeff Sessions to recuse himself from the entire matter, according to a source who has not seen the specific request but was told about it. 

Issued within the past month, the directive marks the special counsel's first records request to the Justice Department, and it means Mueller is now demanding documents from the department overseeing his investigation.

Mueller's investigators now seek not only communications between Justice Department officials themselves, but also any communications with White House counterparts, the source said. Before this request, investigators asked former senior Justice Department officials for information from their time at the department, ABC News was told. 

The latest move suggests the Special Counsel is still actively digging into, among other matters, whether Trump or any other administration official improperly tried to influence an ongoing investigation.

Robert Mueller seems to be cutting pretty close to the bone here.

I would be very surprised if there were not incriminating emails somewhere in the Justice Department that Jeff Sessions and Donald Trump are desperate to keep out of Robert Mueller's hands.

I can almost guarantee that there will be a lack of cooperation which will tip Mueller off as to where to focus next.

Popcorn anyone?

At least eight dead and multiple people injured as Home Depot rental van speeds down New York City bike path.

BREAKING VIDEO: Shooting/car ramming incident Manhattan, multiple injured. Warning Graphic content pic.twitter.com/s6sELaTU2P

— News_Executive (@News_Executive) October 31, 2017

Courtesy of ABC News: 

At least seven people (now eight.) are dead and others injured after a truck driver made a "purposeful turn" onto a jogging and biking path in lower Manhattan in New York City, police said. 

The sprawling crime scene runs about 10 blocks along the West Side Highway, a few blocks away from One World Trade Center.The suspect is in custody, police said. 

The incident is being investigated as a possible terrorist attack, a source confirmed to ABC News.

A vehicle -- a Home Depot rental truck, according to the company -- entered the West Street pedestrian and bike path north of Chambers Street, hitting multiple people on the path, leaving some dead and "numerous people injured," New York City police said, citing preliminary investigation. 

The vehicle kept driving south until it hit another vehicle, police said. At that point, the suspect, who was "displaying imitation firearms," got out of the vehicle and was shot by responding officers, authorities said.

That other vehicle this individual hit was a school bus full of disabled children. Which even for a terrorist is pretty shitty.

According to the news the man driving the van jumped out wielding a pellet gun and yelling "Allahu Akbar" before he was shot by police.

His name is Sayfullo Saipov. And yes he is Muslim.

All in all it was a pretty fucked up thing to happen at all, but especially fucked up that it happened on Halloween when parents were preparing to take their kids around for Trick or Treating.

It seems that now we are doing a pretty good job of stopping the largest terrorist attacks but there is really no way to keep these smaller, low tech attacks from occurring.

And for whatever reason these terrorists seem to really focus on New York City.

Gold Star family finally receives personal check from Donald Trump dated for the same day that the media reported that the promised check had never arrived.

EXCLUSIVE: NC #GoldStar family receives $25,000 personal check, months after condolence call from @POTUS @realDonaldTrump. @ABC11_WTVD @ABC pic.twitter.com/eTUxCCgYMY

— Jonah Kaplan (@KaplanABC11) October 23, 2017

Courtesy of ABC 11: 

The grieving family of a fallen American soldier received a $25,000 check from President Donald Trump on Monday, fulfilling a promise made months ago by the Commander in Chief during a condolence call.

Chris and Jessie Baldridge, whose son Dillon died in June in Afghanistan, spoke exclusively with ABC11 after the check was delivered via FedEx from President Trump's New York address to their home in Zebulon. 

"I'm still speechless," Jessie Baldridge told ABC11's Jonah Kaplan. "We are so moved and grateful, and we promise to use the money to honor Dillon's legacy." 

Here is the letter that the White House sent along with the check.

In letter to Baldridge family, shared only w/ @ABC11_WTVD, @realDonaldTrump says "I hope this will make things a bit easier." @ABCWorldNews pic.twitter.com/MFu2DpGlQK

— Jonah Kaplan (@KaplanABC11) October 23, 2017

This is a real feel good story, after all presidents are certainly not expected to write checks to grieving families out of their own accounts.

This could be real concrete evidence that Donald Trump is not the heartless megalomaniac that we all think him to be.

It COULD be that evidence. If it were not for this one nagging little detail.

A recent Washington Post article brought more attention to the offer - and the delayed response - prompting White House officials to issue a statement saying the check was in the mail. 

"There is a substantial process that can involve multiple agencies anytime the President interacts with the public, especially when transmitting personal funds," a White House official said on October 18. 

"The check has been in the pipeline since the President's initial call with the father. The President has personally followed up several times to ensure that the check was being sent. As stated earlier, the check has been sent." The check was dated for October 18, the same date the White House was asked about the check.

So riddle me this Batman. If there is a "substantive process," and the need for legal counsel to approve a donation like this, how did all of that get streamlined to get this check out on the EXACT same day that Trump was being criticized for not sending it in the media?

Because, and forgive me for sounding cynical, but it kind of sounds as if Donald Trump was NEVER really planning to send this check after he promised that he would, and ONLY did so due to media pressure.

A pair of Senators have reached a deal "in principle" that could undo Donald Trump's executive order to halt payments that subsidize health care, and temporarily protect Obamacare.

Courtesy of ABC News:

Less than a week after President Donald Trump signed an executive order to halt government payments that subsidize insurance plans for low-income Americans, Senate leaders agreed "in principle" to a bill that would cover the payments for two years.

Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., the chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee announced Tuesday that he reached an agreement with Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., the committee's ranking member. The senators each made brief presentations on the deal at lunches with their respective parties. 

According to one source with knowledge of the bill, the agreement contains $160 million to restore outreach and enrollment funding for the Affordable Care Act. 

Trump commented on the prospect of a deal on the payments during a joint press conference with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras Tuesday afternoon, claiming that the White House has been involved in negotiations, but called it a "short-term solution." 

"It will get us over this intermediate hump," said Trump, who continued by claiming that Republicans "have" or "are very close to having" the votes to eventually pass their long-held goal of a comprehensive reform bill.

I actually think that last part is becoming less true everyday as the American people become more and more concerned at what will happen if the Republicans actually succeed in repealing Obamacare.

And speaking of Obamacare it seems a little odd to hear that the White House has been involved in this deal. Especially considering what Trump said just the other day.

President Trump: “Obamacare is finished. It's dead. It’s gone …. There is no such thing as Obamacare any more” https://t.co/CLbWiYUkSp

— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) October 16, 2017

Well apparently there IS still such a thing as Obamacare, and it appears that the Republicans are becoming more and more afraid of touching it.

Texas teen sues after being expelled for refusing to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance.

Courtesy of ABC News:  

A lawsuit says a Houston student's Constitutional rights were violated when she was expelled for not standing for the Pledge of Allegiance. 

Randall Kallinen, an attorney for 17-year-old India Landry's family, said the civil lawsuit was filed Saturday against the Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District and a high school principal. 

The lawsuit says Landry, who'd been sitting for the pledge in class, was expelled Monday after doing that in the principal's office. The lawsuit says Landry returned to school Friday after the principal reversed course, saying Landry could sit. 

Landry, who is black, told KHOU she doesn't think "the flag is what it says it's for, for liberty and justice and all that." 

Denying a child an education because they are exercising their 1st Amendment rights?

Oh Texas, you never disappoint.

Top two members of Senate Intelligence Committee say that issue of collusion remains an open question, while Mueller team takes over investigation on the Russian dossier. Update!

Courtesy of ABC News:

The top two members of the Senate Intelligence Committee gave a detailed update on the panel's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election today, saying that the "issue of collusion" with Russia remains open. 

Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., the chairman of the committee, went through a number of issues that the investigators have looked into and the breadth of their search. 

Burr said the "general consensus" of those involved with the Russian investigation, they "trust the conclusions" of the Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA). The assessment concluded that Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a campaign to undermine the U.S. election and favor then-candidate Donald Trump over Hillary Clinton. 

Burr said that the committee believes "the Russian intelligence service is determined, clever," and something that campaigns should be wary of in any future elections. 

Regarding possible collusion, Burr said, "We continue to investigate both intelligence and witnesses." 

Ranking committee member Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., said that there is a "large consensus that they hacked into political files, released those files in an effort to influence the election. We think they [Russian actors] actively tried to at least test the vulnerabilities of 21 states electoral systems and we feel that they used the social media firms both in terms of paid advertising, and what I believe is more problematic ... created false accounts." 

The Republican, Richard Burr, also stated rather emphatically that "not vote totals were affected," but I would suggest at this time that that is also an open question.

New evidence is coming out almost every day, and I would not be at all surprised to learn that some of the polling stations WERE successfully hacked and votes were altered.

According to WaPo this presser was actually a compromise as the Republicans wanted to release an "interim report," and the Democrats stopped for being premature.

Apparently the Republicans are being pressured to put an end to these investigations to protest Trump, and continue moving their agenda forward.

Of course there is also the Special Counsel, and it does not appear that he is at all interested in ending his investigation.

Courtesy of Reuters:  

The special counsel investigating whether Russia tried to sway the 2016 U.S. election has taken over FBI inquiries into a former British spy's dossier of allegations of Russian financial and personal links to President Donald Trump's campaign and associates, sources familiar with the inquiry told Reuters.

It seems that this dossier is the thing that really puts a fright into Trump and his associates.

For good reason as a number of the allegations have proven accurate.

And now with Mueller on the case, perhaps there is much more that will come out as completely accurate as well.

Update: Breaking news reveals that the Mueller team has already spoken to dossier author Christopher Steele.

Now we're talking.

Russia to Alaska, "We just can't quit you." Well there must be some reason they keep sending military planes close to our airspace.

Courtesy of ABC News: 

American and Canadian fighters jets intercepted two Russian military aircraft that flew north of Alaska and Canada on Thursday night, U.S. Air Force officials said today. 

North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) also confirmed there was another incident on Wednesday night with another pair of Russian aircraft that did not require an intercept, bringing the total number of sightings to four in as many days. 

"Alaskan-based NORAD F-22 Raptors and Royal Canadian CF-18 Hornets intercepted and visually identified two Russian TU-95 bomber aircraft" flying around the north coast of Alaska and Canada, said Mary Ann Clemons a NORAD spokesperson. 

The Russian bombers did not enter American sovereign or Canadian airspace, Clemons said.

Okay I was going to ignore this since it does happen.

But I do not remember it ever happening with this frequency.

We know they are not preparing an invasion or attack, because they already own the guy in the White House. There is simply no need to use anything as crude as military might.

Besides they'd lose.

So maybe they are simply doing it in order to pretend there is still friction between Washington and the Kremlin in order to provide cover for their puppet.

Quite possibly.

Or, and this one seems more likely every day, maybe Trump is planning to simply allow Russians the opportunity to annex part of the state for for their own needs and they are scouting out potential locations with a nice view of the Bering Straight.

Who knows? All I know for sure is that they are definitely up to something.

ABC invites Eric Bolling of Fox News to join Sunday panel, because apparently journalism is dead.

Courtesy of Media Matters:

Fox News host and Trump shill Eric Bolling is scheduled to appear as a panelist on ABC’s This Week. Aside from cheerleading everything President Donald Trump says and does, Bolling was a prominent birther who challenged former President Barack Obama’s legitimacy, as well as a racist, sexist and Islamophobic conspiracy theorist. Bolling has been one of Trump’s most outspoken media sycophants, even on Fox News. 

He’s dismissed Trump’s lies, downplayed the controversies surrounding the president, and deflected blame from Trump and his allies. Even his colleagues at Fox News have called him a “Trump apologist.” Bolling has also criticized the integrity of the host of This Week, George Stephanopoulos. In October, Bolling speculated that Good Morning America, ABC’s morning show which Stephanopoulos also hosts, did not cover hacked emails from former Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton’s top aides released on WikiLeaks because Stephanopoulos used to work for former President Bill Clinton.

MM goes on to list a number of sexist, racist, and Islamophobic remarks that Bolling has made over the years, complete with video, and then sums up the problem with his appearance on what is considered a serious Sunday news program at the bottom of the page: 

During his time at Fox News, Bolling has pushed a number of conspiracy theories. He was a big force behind the “birther” conspiracy theory that alleged that Obama was not born in the U.S. After Obama released his long-form birth certificate, Bolling still claimed, that “there is a legitimate question as to whether or not the president of the United States is allowed to be president of the United States.” 

Bolling took it upon himself to thoroughly examine Obama’s birth certificate on air, even speculating that the certificate’s border showed it may have been photoshopped. Bolling also speculated about the death of former Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich who was murdered in 2016, dismissing the police conclusion that his death was the result of a botched robbery: “It’s clearly not a robbery. There wasn’t a robbery. … This was a hit.” Bolling concluded that there’s “lots of smoke right now” and that the death was “like an episode of Homeland.” 

Beyond that, Bolling has pushed a number of other conspiracy theories, alleging that Obama was trying to “bring people closer to the cities” to keep an eye on them and questioning whether Obama “let” an oil rig leak so he “could renege on his promise” to “allow some offshore drilling.” Perhaps his most entertaining conspiracy theory came in 2011 when Bolling wondered if “liberal Hollywood was using class warfare [in a Muppets movie] to brainwash our kids.”

Simply put not only should Eric Bolling NEVER be given legitimacy by inviting him on an actual news show, but NONE of the Fox News talking heads, or Right Wing radio hosts, should be provided that platform to spread their lies to the American people. 

And yes I include Megyn Kelly, Greta Van Susteren, and Hugh Hewitt in that category.

These are NOT journalists.

They are purveyors of conspiracy theories, alternative facts, and Right Wing talking points. 

There is a place for that, but it is certainly NOT on actual news programs that advertise themselves as practicing journalism.

Donald Trump sets a new record by having the lowest six month approval ratings of any president in the last 70 years.

Courtesy of ABC News: 

Americans give President Donald Trump the lowest six-month approval rating of any president in polls dating back 70 years, punctuated by questions about his competence on the world stage, his effectiveness, the GOP health care plan and Russia’s role in the 2016 election. 

Just 36 percent of Americans polled in a new ABC News/Washington Post poll approve of Trump’s job performance, down 6 points from his 100-day mark, itself a low. The previous president closest to this level at or near six months was Gerald Ford, at 39 percent, in February 1975.

The poll also found that 63% of Americans think that it was inappropriate for Junior to take the meeting with Russians, and 60% think the Russians worked to help Trump win.

I guess this is what MAGA means, right?

US intelligence agencies asked the Justice Department to open criminal investigation into leaks, because remember the leaks are much worse than actual collusion with the Russians.

Courtesy of ABC News:  

Looking to stem the tide of bombshell news reports linking Russian operatives with associates of President Donald Trump, U.S. intelligence agencies have taken the significant step of formally referring as many as six recent leaks to the Justice Department for criminal investigation, according to sources familiar with the matter. 

Word of the criminal referrals comes as President Trump tries to use growing hostility toward the press as a means of making money for the Republican National Committee. 

"Do your part to fight back against the media's attacks and deceptions," the president said Friday in a fundraising email blasted out by the RNC and obtained by ABC News. "They don’t care about the truth." 

Meanwhile, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein may issue a private memorandum to his entire workforce in the coming weeks, reinforcing department guidelines that govern when employees can engage with members of the media, according to Justice Department insiders. 

For months, President Trump and key Republican lawmakers have been calling on the Justice Department to investigate who told reporters about classified information uncovered during the U.S. government's ongoing probe of Russian meddling in last year's presidential election. But there's only one voice that can really prompt a Justice Department leak investigation: the U.S. intelligence community.

So I guess now that Trump has his people running the intelligence agencies, the obstructionism can begin in earnest.

Of course this is not without precedent as Richard Nixon once asked his FBI Director to be as ruthless as the Nazis in attempting to find Deep Throat.

And we all know how well THAT worked out.

By the way those leakers might be closer than Donald Trump dares to suspect.

Wow. @JoeNBC says Steve Bannon bragged about having damaging info about Kushner days before Kushner meeting w/ Gorkov leaked to the NYT.

— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) June 2, 2017

Oh my God! It's coming from inside the house!

Donald Trump bitches about his critics during commencement speech at Liberty University.

Courtesy of ABC News: 

President Trump in a commencement address at Liberty University both went after his critics and emphasized the role faith plays in America. 

“The fact is, no one has achieved anything significant without a chorus of critics standing on the sidelines explaining why it can't be done,” Trump told the crowd in Lynchburg, Virginia, in what was his first commencement speech as president. “Nothing is easier or more pathetic than being a critic...The future belongs to the people who follow their heart no matter what the critics say because they truly believe in their vision.”

It should be noted that virtually NOTHING that Donald Trump promised during his campaign has actual been accomplished, and that it is very unlikely that any of it WILL be accomplished.

It should also be pointed out that Liberty University is probably one of the VERY few universities where Trump could speak without being drowned out by the boos, much like the ones that shut down his Secretary of Education when she tried to deliver a commencement speech to a group not handpicked to stay silent.

After Trump's October visit to Liberty University there was a protest letter issued by some of the students, however verbally protesting a speaker is simply not tolerated in that environment.

However Liberty would seem overall to be the perfect conservative bubble in which Trump can lie to his heart's content, because after all these students have just been lied to for the past four years anyhow. 

Of course Trump advises these students to ignore their critics, because he himself simply cannot handle protests or criticism, that is why he has protesters removed from his rallies, and almost daily attacks his critics on Twitter.

The Fake Media is working overtime today!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 12, 2017

And his advice to these students is of course terrible, because often your critics are simply pointing out that something you are doing is dangerous, foolish, or reckless.

Which I think sums up the Trump presidency in a nutshell.

Nancy Pelosi apologizes after accidentally referring to Donald Trump as President Bush.

.@NancyPelosi to @jonkarl: "I never thought I'd pray for the day" when George W. Bush was president again https://t.co/mc5NSfxbZx #ThisWeek pic.twitter.com/BgMHuRwg5k

— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) April 30, 2017

Courtesy of The Hill:

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) during an interview early Sunday accidentally referred to President Trump as former President George W. Bush. 

After the mistake on ABC’s “This Week,” Pelosi quickly corrected herself. 

“I’m so sorry, President Bush,” Pelosi said. “I never thought I would pray for the day that you were president again.” Pelosi was discussing Democrats working with the White House when she mentioned Bush.

I totally get what Pelosi is feeling, because I feel it all of the time as well.

I started this blog to oppose George W. Bush, and I have no intention of engaging in revisionist history or minimizing my strong anger and frustration at his administration. 

However at the time I thought he was the worst president this country would EVER see.

And then November 2016 arrived and I had a whole new definition of "worst."

It is not even like comparing apples to oranges.

It is more like comparing the measles to leprosy.

George W. Bush was terrible, with a capital "T."

But Donald Trump is goddamn catastrophic.

And like that lady in the post below is saying, we have NEVER seen anything that him before, and I hope to never see anything like him again. 

It turns out the Syrian hoax meme was the result of Russian propaganda.

Ah you Americans are ever so easy to manipulate. You are like children.

Courtesy of ABC News:  

As Syrian president Bashar al-Assad called videos of last week’s chemical attack a “fabrication,” a piece of propaganda promoted by a Russian cyber operation and bearing the hashtag #SyriaHoax has gained traction in the United States, analysts tell ABC News. 

Following the chemical weapons attack that killed dozens of civilians on Tuesday, Al-Masdar News, a pro-Assad website based in Beirut, published claims that "something is not adding up in [the] Idlib chemical weapons attack." Its author cited "holes" in the accounts provided by the "Al-Qaeda affiliated" White Helmets leading to the conclusion that "this is another false chemical attack allegation made against the government." 

That hoax story was promoted by a network of Russian social media accounts and ultimately picked up by popular alt-right personalities in the United States, including Mike Cernovich, one of the leading voices in the debunked 'Pizzagate' conspiracy theory. Cernovich popularized its new hashtag -- #SyriaHoax -- and sent it soaring through cyberspace. According to Trends24, within hours of the retaliatory missile strike President Donald Trump launched on Thursday night, #SyriaHoax was the No. 1 trending Twitter topic in the United States. 

J.M. Berger of The International Centre for Counter-Terrorism at The Hague, who studies propaganda and social media analytical techniques, said #SyriaHoax is "a clear example of a Russian influence campaign" designed to undermine the credibility of the U.S. government. 

"The point of an influence campaign is to get people involved who wouldn't otherwise be involved," Berger said. "A lot of people in the alt-right would not necessarily characterize themselves as being pro-Russian, but they're receiving influence from this campaign."

It should be noted that some of the people clearly influenced by this propaganda include Alex Jones, Tulsi Gabbard, and of course Sarah Palin.

We all need to keep in mind that the Russian attempt to spread disinformation and shape our opinions did NOT end with the election. They are still doing it, and it does not seem that it will stop anytime soon.

We just have to be vigilant and make sure that our sources are from reputable news outlets, and not some faux Russian backed news website whose sole purpose is to keep us off balance and make us question reality itself.