Trumpublicons: Foreign Influence/Grifting in '16 US Election

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Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby seemslikeadream » Thu Mar 16, 2017 5:29 pm

Russia Biggest Cybersecurity Firm Head Arrested For Treason
... Was Allegedly a U.S. Spy Working in the Heart of Russian Cybersecurity – Russian Papers Suggest By Rafia Shaikh 8 hours ago Treason charges: Kaspersky security expert and top FSB official allegedly tipped info to US News reports from Russia and a statement from AV company Kaspersky confirmed ...

viewtopic.php?f=8&t=40330&p=633595&hilit=Kaspersky#p633595

Kaspersky Labs paid Flynn for his Moscow jaunt? Oh myyyyyyyy

Former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn paid $56,200 by Russian firms in 2015, documents show
President Trump's fired national security adviser, retired Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, was paid a total of $56,200 in 2015 by three Russian firms owned by or closely tied to the Kremlin, new documents released by congressional Democrats appear to show.

The fees included $33,750 paid by Russia's state-owned TV network RT to the retired three-star general, who once served as director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, to speak at what the Russian organizers described to his speakers bureau as a "private, invitation-only conference." An additional $11,250 was paid to Leading Authorities, Flynn's speaking agents.

In the 24 pages of assorted 2015 emails and documents voluntarily handed over to the House Oversight Committee by Leading Authorities, RT did not mention that the Dec. 10, 2015 conference and dinner in Moscow celebrating the Russian network's 10th anniversary would be broadcast on television worldwide or that the star speaker -- within arm's reach of Flynn in a video of the televised event -- would be Russian President Vladimir Putin.

But Democrats claim the RT fee, as well as additional payments totaling $22,500 to Flynn by Russian cyber security firm Kaspersky Lab and Volga-Dnepr Airlines, add up to a clear violation of the Constitution's Emoluments Clause, which prohibits retired generals from accepting direct or indirect payments from foreign governments, according to the committee's ranking member Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md).

Cummings asked the Pentagon to investigate Flynn for this shortly before Trump fired him last month as White House national security adviser for not fully disclosing his discussions with Russia's ambassador to Washington during the transition.

In a new letter today, Cummings charged that Flynn had "violated the Constitution" by accepting such payments from "an agent of a global adversary that attacked our democracy," an apparent reference to U.S. intelligence agencies' assessment that Russian government-directed hackers had pilfered emails of the Democratic National Committee and Secretary Hillary Clinton's campaign manager John Podesta.

Pentagon officials, who have not said what if any actions would be taken by Secretary of Defense James Mattis, noted today that Cummings' latest letter was also addressed to Trump and referred ABC News to the White House. National Security Council officials there referred a reporter to Flynn's lawyers, who did not immediately return a call for comment.

Shortly after the Dec. 10, 2015 broadcast showing Flynn at the head table alongside CIA whistleblower Ray McGovern and Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein, a senior U.S. intelligence official told ABC News it was a stunning image of the former military intelligence chief, "that close to a despot, an enemy to the U.S., at an event for the Russian government's propaganda arm."

On Nov. 24, 2015, Leading Authorities asked RT to provide Flynn with a list of who would be at his table with his son and "executive officer" at his private consulting firm, Flynn Intel Group, Michael G. Flynn. But RT replied only that invitees included "Russian politics leaders" and that the guest list was still being assembled.

On Dec. 1, 2015, an RT press release said that Flynn, former head of "the country’s main foreign military espionage organization," would appear at the gala dinner, as well as Stein and McGovern -- but RT did not announce that the keynote speaker was to be President Putin, the American nemesis and number one "Russian politics leader."

Flynn later acknowledged in press interviews the paid engagement to appear at the RT gala to talk about radical Islam, but he also has said he wasn't uncomfortable with it in hindsight, while declining to provide details about any payments from RT.

Because Flynn held a Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information clearance, he also would have been required to report to the DIA any repeated contacts or payments from foreign nationals or foreign-owned firms as well as foreign travel, which Cummings also noted today in a request for more documents from the Trump administration.

Flynn began advising Trump on foreign policy matters in early 2016, according to published reports.

He was forced to leave his post as DIA director and retire as a three-star general officer in 2014 over his management style and clashes with the Obama administration over policy. Flynn had spent decades as an intelligence officer in the military and oversaw intelligence used to by the U.S. Joint Special Operations Command to kill Iraq's top insurgent leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in 2006, who led the al-Qaeda branch that later became known as ISIS.

Congress is responsible for enforcing the emoluments clause and also has the power to exempt someone from it.

Documents recently filed by Flynn showed his consulting firm was paid more than $500,000 by a company tied to the government of Turkey for lobbying during the fall transition period, which critics say was ethically questionable.
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trump-na ... d=46179186
Mazars and Deutsche Bank could have ended this nightmare before it started.
They could still get him out of office.
But instead, they want mass death.
Don’t forget that.
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Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby Iamwhomiam » Fri Mar 17, 2017 7:55 pm

^^^^ It's deja vu, all over again, only this time it's worse:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Deaver#Perjury_conviction

Getting the swamp ready for draining!
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Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby seemslikeadream » Sat Mar 18, 2017 4:59 pm

Former Trump campaign chief Paul Manafort wanted for questioning in Ukraine corruption case
By Simon Ostrovsky, CNN Investigations
Updated 2019 GMT (0419 HKT) March 18, 2017

Ukrainian authorities want to question former Trump campaign chief Paul Manafort as part of a corruption case

Manafort has not been charged with a crime

(CNN)Ukrainian prosecutors want to question Paul Manafort in connection with a corruption investigation and have made repeated requests for assistance from US authorities, CNN has learned.

Prosecutors in Kiev said they have made seven separate appeals over the past two years for help in questioning President Donald Trump's former campaign manager, including letters to FBI Director James Comey and US Justice Department officials. Ukrainian officials said the US has not responded to those requests.
Under a "mutual legal assistance" treaty, the two countries have agreed to regularly assist each other in law enforcement efforts, such as gathering statements and other evidence for prosecutions.
US authorities confirmed to CNN that the requests were received but declined further comment.
Manafort served as Trump's campaign chief until being pushed out in August 2016.
The official requests from a special prosecution unit in Kiev started in December 2014, and involve a corruption case targeting Ukraine's former Justice Minister Oleksandr Lavrynovych.
Manafort has not been charged with a crime. Prosecutors want him to testify, Ukraine's prosecutor for special investigations Serhiy Gorbatyuk said.
Prosecutors allege that Lavrynovych illegally diverted more than $1 million in government funds to a prominent New York City law firm — Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom.
Lavrynovych had hired Skadden to review the 2011 jailing of former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, who had received a seven-year sentence for allegedly harming Ukraine's interests in gas supply negotiations with Russia.
Tymoshenko was the main political rival of the Kremlin-backed President Viktor Yanukovych, whom Manafort advised until Yanukovych was deposed in 2014. Tymoshenko was released from jail at the same time that Yanukovych was ousted.
Many saw her sentencing as politically motivated by the pro-Russian government.
In 2012, as a result of the sentencing, Ukraine faced the possibility of an unfavorable ruling from the European Court of Human Rights, and US lawmakers were considering sanctions.
In response to the deteriorating international climate, Ukrainian prosecutors say, Manafort drafted a public relations strategy that included hiring Skadden to review the Tymoshenko case and show the conviction had a sound legal basis.
But a spokeswoman for the US State Department in 2012 said the report Skadden eventually came out with "was incomplete and doesn't give an accurate picture."
Prosecutors told CNN that Ukraine's Justice Ministry had signed an agreement with Skadden to provide legal services for the equivalent of only $12,000, the legal limit above which it would have been necessary to hold a public competition to award a government contracting job.
Prosecutors provided CNN with the details of a bank transfer that took place on May 30, 2013 to a Citibank account allegedly belonging to Skadden from a Justice Ministry bank account.
The document shows the ministry wired Skadden more than $1 million -- $1,075,381.41. It is this payment that prosecutors charge was a misappropriation of government funds.
"We believe they wanted to avoid the time consuming competition they would have had to organize to hire the law firm legally, so they drew up the undervalued contract and probably arranged to pay the real fee in cash," Gorbatyuk told CNN, speaking in Russian.
However, when Tymoshenko's legal team publicly pointed out that the government could not have secured Skadden's services for just $12,000, Skadden asked Ukrainian officials to draw up a second contract that reflected a more realistic fee, prosecutors allege.
Asked to comment on its involvement in the matter, Skadden released a statement to CNN: "We have been and will continue cooperating with appropriate requests."
Members of Gorbatyuk's office showed CNN a record of seven separate occasions when they asked the US authorities for help.
The first letter was sent in December 2014 to the US Justice Department's Office of International Affairs, and was a request to question Skadden partner Gregory Craig, who also served as a White House counsel in the Obama administration.
In December 2015, Gorbatyuk's office sent another letter to the Department of Justice asking to question Manafort.
The trigger for the request was two emails prosecutors found. The contents of those emails were provided to CNN: One between Craig and Manafort where Craig asked Manafort to help secure paperwork from Ukraine needed for Skadden's report, and another between a Skadden employee and a Ukrainian official that mentioned Manafort's presence at a meeting with the Justice Minister.
Prosecutors also showed CNN documentation they sent to the DOJ in which they told the US authorities that their investigation had "established that the well--known American political strategist Paul Manafort is implicated in the relationship between the Skadden Arps. firm and the Justice Ministry of Ukraine." Of Manafort, the letter said he "was likely the person who advised representatives of the former Government of Ukraine to hire the law firm and was present during talks about this issue."
Manafort declined to provide comment for this story.
The final letter was dated September 2016: Ukraine's Prosecutor General, the equivalent of a US Attorney General, sent a letter directly to FBI director James Comey asking for clarification for why the US authorities would not help.

Related: Ukraine lawyer seeks probe of alleged hacked texts of Manafort's daughter

Some of the attempts to question Manafort coincided with a time period when the FBI grappled with the issue of whether to subpoena Manafort in its separate investigation surrounding his business dealings in Ukraine, last summer. Comey has faced criticism for taking a different approach on legal matters relating to the Hillary Clinton campaign after he controversially sent a letter to Congress announcing the FBI's renewed interest in her use of a personal server during her time as Secretary of State just 11 days before the election.
Manafort currently faces an FBI investigation over millions of dollars' worth of payments he allegedly received while working for Yanukovych. Manafort has denied those claims.
http://edition.cnn.com/2017/03/17/polit ... t-ukraine/
Mazars and Deutsche Bank could have ended this nightmare before it started.
They could still get him out of office.
But instead, they want mass death.
Don’t forget that.
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Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby seemslikeadream » Sun Mar 19, 2017 6:50 pm

House Intel Committee’s Jackie Speier: multiple cabinet members involved in Trump-Russia scandal
By Bill Palmer | March 19, 2017 | 0

“This is as big if not bigger than Watergate,” said Jackie Speier during an interview with MSNBC today, and she’s in a position to know. The Democratic Congresswoman sits on the House Intelligence Committee, whose hearings on Donald Trump and Russia get underway tomorrow, and she’s seen evidence the public hasn’t. In fact she appears to have just revealed a piece of the puzzle that wasn’t previously publicly known.

Speier pointed out that the two principals on her committee, chair Devin Nunes and ranking member Adam Schiff, currently have access to more classified information on Trump-Russia than she does. But even based on what she’s seen so far, she stated the following: “There is circumstantial evidence of an entire web that Putin put in place ensnaring many of the people who now have very respected positions within the U.S. cabinet.” And that sets off all the alarms.

Donald Trump’s Attorney General Jeff Sessions is already known to have met with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak multiple times while he was a Trump campaign surrogate, and then lied about it under oath. So that’s one cabinet member. But of the other alleged election-rigging conspirators within Trump’s campaign, none of them are in Trump’s cabinet. For instance Michael Flynn has already resigned, and National Security Adviser isn’t a cabinet position to begin with. Beyond Sessions, what other “many” cabinet members is she referring to?



There is no known evidence tying Secretary of Defense James Mattis or Homeland Security Director John Kelly to the Trump-Russia scandal. So is Congresswoman Speier instead referring to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson? His own financial ties to Putin and Russian oil are deeply documented, but no publicly available evidence has tied him to the Russian election rigging. Does she know something about Tillerson that we don’t? Or is she perhaps referring to the connection between Trump Tower’s Russian email server and Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, which Palmer Report first exposed six weeks ago? Watch Congresswoman Jackie Speier’s full interview:


Jacob Soboroff ✔ @jacobsoboroff
House Intel Committee's @RepSpeier on Trump-Russia ties: “this is going to be as big if not bigger than Watergate.”
2:05 PM - 19 Mar 2017
507 507 Retweets 627 627 likes


Wait, what? House intel chair says no one at White House under surveillance “but one”
By Tommy Christopher |
MARCH 19, 2017
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes (R-CA) turned heads this week when he said it was "very possible" that Donald Trump was swept up in surveillance intercepts of foreigners, and he has now added to the intrigue with a curious statement following a classified briefing with the FBI.

Fox News
Shortly after House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) told reporters that it was “very possible” Donald Trump had been directly swept up in intelligence community surveillance, members of the Senate Intelligence Committee emerged from their own classified briefing with FBI Director James Comey looking visibly shaken.
Now, Nunes has ratcheted up the intrigue, with an extremely curious statement — one which unfortunately flew right by his interviewer.
Fox News Sunday’s Chris Wallace asked Nunes about members of “Trump World” being swept up in surveillance, and Nunes delivered a very specific reply:
Video Player
00:0000:32
WALLACE: Do we think there was any surveillance of people in Trump World, or do we think that there was surveillance of other people like Ambassador Kislyak and that these folks who were talking to them were incidentally swept up in the conversations, in the intercepts?
NUNES: Well, if you look at the folks that are working at the White House today, that are involved in the Trump administration, I don’t think there’s any but one there that is under any type of investigation or surveillance activities at all.
It is possible that Wallace missed this answer because he thought Nunes was referring to disgraced former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn. But Nunes specifically said referenced people “working in the White House today,” saying that all “but one” are free of investigation or surveillance.
Comey will testify before the House Intelligence Committee this week, where, depending on the level of classification involved, the public may learn the identity of the “but one” to whom Nunes is referring.
http://shareblue.com/wait-what-house-in ... e-but-one/


Rep. Schiff: ‘Circumstantial Evidence of Collusion’ Between Trump Campaign, Russia
by KAILANI KOENIG

WASHINGTON — Despite denials from some top intelligence officials that there was any evidence of collusion between associates of Donald Trump's presidential campaign and Russian operatives while Moscow tried to interfere with the 2016 election, Rep. Adam Schiff on Sunday defended the House Intelligence Committee continuing to look into the matter.

Two weeks ago on "Meet The Press," James Clapper, the Director of National Intelligence under President Obama, denied that any evidence of such collusion existed while he oversaw the work of U.S. intelligence agencies. The Trump administration has also reiterated those denials.

Play Schiff: Investigation Needs to Know if Evidence of Collusion or Deception Facebook Twitter Embed
Schiff: Investigation Needs to Know if Evidence of Collusion or Deception 3:40
But this Sunday on "Meet The Press," Schiff, D-Calif., told host Chuck Todd, "I was surprised to see Director Clapper say that because I don't think you can make that claim categorically as he did. I would characterize it this way at the outset of the investigation: There is circumstantial evidence of collusion. There is direct evidence, I think, of deception and that's where we begin the investigation."

Schiff is the ranking Democratic member on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.

"There is certainly enough for us to conduct an investigation," he added. "The American people have a right to know and in order to defend ourselves, we need to know whether the circumstantial evidence of collusion and direct evidence of deception is indicative of more."

Play Full Schiff: End Trump's Wiretap 'Wild Goose Chase' Facebook Twitter Embed
Full Schiff: End Trump's Wiretap 'Wild Goose Chase' 7:35
Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., the chair of the House Intelligence Committee, seemed to contradict this, repeating on Fox News Sunday that he hasn't seen any evidence of collusion between Russians and Trump associates.

"I'll give you a very simple answer: 'No,'" he said. "Up to speed on everything I have up to this morning, there's no evidence of collusion."

On Monday, the House Intelligence Committee will hold a hearing on Russian attempts to interfere with the 2016 election. Schiff noted that the committee's inquiry has a broad scope examining various techniques and methods Russia used.

"I think people need to understand we are in a global war of ideas," Schiff said. "It's not communism versus capitalism but it is authoritarianism versus democracy and Putin is very much at the vanguard of that autocratic movement, and that ought to concern all of us."

The congressman has been briefed on matters related to Trump's still-unsubstantiated accusation that former President Obama ordered a wiretap of Trump Tower before the election. The White House has not offered any evidence to support this claim, first tweeted by Trump two weeks ago, and instead has asked Congress to investigate. A spokesperson for President Obama roundly rejected the idea.

Schiff on Sunday said there was still no evidence to support Trump's accusation, responding to comments made by Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, in an earlier interview on "Meet the Press."

Collins said she wanted to "get to the bottom of this before saying what should be done," adding, "I don't know the basis for President Trump's assertion. And that's what I wish he would explain to us on the Intelligence Committee and to the American people. And I do believe he owes us that explanation."

Schiff countered, "Once again, no evidence to support the president's claim that he was wiretapped by his predecessor. And you know what, I have a lot of respect for Susan Collins but I have to differ with her on this — 'We need to get to the bottom of this.' We are at the bottom. There is nothing at the bottom."

"I hope that we can put an end to this wild goose chase because what the president said was just patently false, and the wrecking ball it created now has banged into our British allies and our German allies," Schiff added. "It's continuing to grow in terms of damage and he needs to put an end to this."

When Collins was asked by Chuck Todd whether or not she can take the president at his word, she responded, "Yes."

"I mean, do I think the president gets everything right? No," she continued. "But I want President Trump, just as I've wanted every other president, to be successful. Because he is America's president. Now that doesn't mean that I support his policies, and it doesn't mean that I'm going to be with him when I think he's wrong, or has misstated what the facts are.
http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politic ... ns-n735391
Mazars and Deutsche Bank could have ended this nightmare before it started.
They could still get him out of office.
But instead, they want mass death.
Don’t forget that.
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Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby seemslikeadream » Sun Mar 19, 2017 8:46 pm

Ides of March 2017: Director Comey gave Two Briefings on Capitol Hill
Mar 16, 2017 10:15am CDT by Mopshell
Image
The most widely reported briefing was that given to members of the Senate, which appears to have been the second of the two meetings. It took place in the basement of the Capitol Building, within a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF), waggishly dubbed “the cone of silence”.

The first briefing was provided to the two leaders of the House Committee on Intelligence, Rep Devin Nunes, chairman, and Rep Adam Schiff, Ranking Member. In the reporting of that meeting there was no mention of SCIF.

FBI briefings are strictly invitation only.

The invites themselves are delivered clandestinely — it is not unusual for staff to be completely unaware that their senator or rep has such a meeting until after it happens.

But the germane point here is that they are invitation only which makes it particularly interesting to look at who the invitees are. I think we can take it as read that anyone who is invited will be in attendance. These briefings are proving to be the most dramatic events happening in Congress this session so nobody invited would want to miss one for any reason.

The Senate Briefing

You may be forgiven for thinking that only two senators were invited to the second of the day’s briefings but there were, in fact, four senators there: Chuck Grassley, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Dianne Feinstein, Ranking Member of the same committee, Chuck Schumer, Minority Leader and ex-officio member of all senate committees, and Mark Warner, Ranking Member of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

It was The Hill reporter Katie Bo Will who tweeted out the list of attendees:


Those four invitees are notable initially because only one is a Republican. But even more intriguing is who was not on the invitation list:

Mitch McConnell who, as Majority Leader, is also an ex-officio member of all senate committees
and

Richard Burr who is the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee.
Both their Democratic counterparts were invited but not them. This is also the second FBI briefing to which Schumer has been invited but not McConnell.

Mediaite had this to say about why they were there:

The two top lawmakers on the Senate Judiciary Committee met with Comey after Grassley threatened to hold up the vote on Deputy Attorney General nominee Rod Rosenstein unless the FBI gave his panel a briefing on their investigations into Russian meddling in the election, any potential ties between Russia and President Donald Trump, and Trump’s claims that he was wiretapped by his predecessor.

Though this doesn’t explain why Schumer and Warner were also invited, it does give us some idea of the subject matter — or part thereof — covered by the briefing. What will be interesting next is how Grassley handles the Rosenstein’s nomination. The Hill reported:

Asked if he was prepared to move forward with Rosenstein's nomination after Wednesday's briefings, Grassley appeared to signal that the No. 2 DOJ nominee is still in limbo — at least temporarily.

"I won't answer that until I've gone over all the answers I got," he told reporters Wednesday.

As chairman of the committee, Grassley can effectively hold up the nomination by refusing to schedule a committee vote.

Most pertinent of all, and most reported upon, is the reaction of Grassley and Feinstein when they met with reporters afterwards. Raw Story reported they “looked grim and rattled” while others described Feinstein as looking “stricken” and Grassley “as though he’d seen a ghost.”


What struck me most was that it was Feinstein who spoke to reporters, not Grassley. It appeared that Feinstein took the lead because Grassley was too upset to do so. He stared at the ground a good deal.

What is not shown on the video is the very last part of this interview. The Hill had this report:

When a reporter asked if they were "satisfied" with the answers they got, Grassley turned to Feinstein, asked if she was "ready to go" and the two headed toward the subway that connects the Capitol to the Senate office buildings.

"If you want to ask me some other time, but not in this environment right here," Grassley told the swarm of reporters and TV cameras.

The House Briefing

Only the two leaders of the House Intelligence Committee attended this briefing. Their reactions afterwards were markedly different to that of the senators.

Nunes appeared to be quite relaxed and certainly happy to talk about what was said in their briefing. Share Blue has a short video of his speaking with a CNN reporter. Included was this transcript and comment:

Hunt: “Do you have any reason to believe that the President himself or anyone working for him in the White House would be one of these names that may have been swept up in something that could then have ultimately been leaked, like what happened to Michael Flynn?” Nunes: “Well, I think it’s very possible. But, like I said, we should know that by Friday.” Hunt: “Do you think the President himself might be one of those people that was swept up in this?” Nunes: “It’s possible. I mean look…”
As you can see from the clip, the journalist appears taken aback by Nunes’ comment that Trump might be directly involved and asks the question again, in reply to which Nunes’ responds with the same answer.

Schiff, however, had quite a different response, as reported in another Share Blue article:

Additionally, Schiff took the unusual step of openly disagreeing with Nunes to assert it was not possible to say there were no contacts between the Trump campaign and Russia.

He noted that a similar question was put to the FBI Director and, because of Comey’s answer, Schiff concluded:

“I cannot answer that question the same way. Not certainly with the same categorical nature of the response. So, I don’t share that summary conclusion, and that’s about all I can say on that subject.“

Although it would appear that both groups were seeking much the same information, from the two radically different responses it is evident that the content of those briefings were not the same. What may have made the difference is who Comey was addressing in each briefing. He trusted those in the Senate briefing with highly confidential information but the same cannot be said for the briefing given to Nunes and Schiff.

If there was someone in that House briefing that Comey didn’t trust, it was Devin Nunes. The circumstantial evidence against Nunes is certainly piling up:

He was on Trump’s transition team which was chockablock with Russiaphiles
As chairman of the House Intel Committee, he initially refused to investigate Trump-Russia but focussed instead on White House and agency leakers
As directed by the White House, he told media contacts (as provided for him by Sean Spicer) there was nothing to any of the Kremlingate stories
His apparent agreement to investigate Trump-Russia after all came shortly after his total denial of the Kremlingate stories; he should have recused himself but refused to do so
Having agreed to investigate Trump campaign ties to Russia, he has since spent his time avoiding such an investigation and diverted his committee down the garden path of non-existent wiretaps
Comey has given two briefings to Nunes’ committee and both times the briefings were very general, whereas Comey’s briefings to Upper Chamber have resulted in tight-lipped and very worried senators.
Thus far Nunes remains on my list of GOP congressmen who are likely to be involved to some extent in Kremlingate while Chuck Grassley is in the clear.
Mazars and Deutsche Bank could have ended this nightmare before it started.
They could still get him out of office.
But instead, they want mass death.
Don’t forget that.
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Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby seemslikeadream » Mon Mar 20, 2017 6:47 am

Image
Heading into Russia hearings, Donald Trump’s approval rating sinks toward Richard Nixon’s exit range
By Bill Palmer | March 19, 2017 | 0

The House Intelligence Committee begins its public hearings today on Donald Trump’s Russia scandal, and while the House investigation may or may not go anywhere, the parallel Senate Intelligence Committee investigation seems likely to do far more harm to Trump’s popular standing. So it couldn’t come as worse news for Trump that his Gallup approval rating just sunk to its lowest point to date, putting him in danger of Richard Nixon’s exit range.

From the start I’ve been asked what it would take to get rid of Donald Trump. Dating back to the day after the election, my answer has consistently been the same: an approval rating in the twenties. Back when Watergate was getting worse for Nixon by the day, he managed to fend off the wolves until his approval rating finally planted itself below the thirty percent mark. At that point it meant he had basically lost the entire American middle, and he was so toxically unpopular that even his own political allies had to begin actively shunning him just so they could survive. No longer able to function, Nixon resigned.

The parameters for Donald Trump aren’t all that much different. There’s already more than enough evidence for Congress to impeach and remove Trump based on his Russia scandal, or his Trump University fraud, even his phony wiretap accusation, or really anything they want. It’s entirely up the discretion of the House to decide what an impeachable offense is, and then it’s entirely up to the Senate to decide whether that offense is a removable one. But the Republican majority is never going to even consider doing so, as long as Trump’s weak approval rating hangs in there just well enough to give them faint hope that he might claw his way back.



So it’s a big deal that Donald Trump’s Gallup approval rating has bottomed out today at 37%, just as the first Trump-Russia hearings are getting underway. If the broader attention brought to his Russia scandal serves to drive his approval rating another eight points lower, he’ll be in the twenties. At that point he’ll have no allies in government left, because no one from either party is willing to stand next to a president who’s that radioactive.



If Donald Trump’s approval rating does drop below 30%, the GOP will have to seriously evaluate whether the humiliation of having to impeach and remove him might be preferable to having to enter the 2018 midterms with him still in office. And even if the Republicans don’t take him down, he’ll have zero political muscle remaining, and no chance of rebounding in popularity. If Trump drops into the twenties, his only two options will be to be a lame duck or resign. Just ask Nixon.
http://www.palmerreport.com/opinion/hea ... ange/1989/

Image
Mazars and Deutsche Bank could have ended this nightmare before it started.
They could still get him out of office.
But instead, they want mass death.
Don’t forget that.
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Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby seemslikeadream » Mon Mar 20, 2017 7:03 am

This is trumpty dumbty's steepest dive to date.
Image
The key players in Monday's Russia hearing
Juliette Kayyem
By Juliette Kayyem, CNN National Security Analyst
Updated 0235 GMT (1035 HKT) March 20, 2017

The House Intelligence Committee meets Monday on Russia and the 2016 elections
Juliette Kayyem: Five key players will decide how much bigger the story becomes
CNN national security analyst Juliette Kayyem is the author of the best-selling "Security Mom: An Unclassified Guide to Protecting Our Homeland and Your Home." She is a professor at Harvard's Kennedy School, a former Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security in the Obama administration, host of the national security podcast The SCIF and founder of Kayyem Solutions, a security consulting firm. The opinions expressed in this commentary are hers.

(CNN)On Monday, the House Intelligence Committee will hold its first, much-anticipated public hearing on Russia's involvement in the 2016 election. The hearing is significant because it will determine whether all the noise regarding Russia, Trump and the relationship between the two is grounds for further investigation.

There is quite a bit to look out for. But five key players will determine how much bigger this story gets.
1. The enigma: James Comey
Comey's "October Surprise" is viewed by many Democrats as hurting Clinton's electoral odds, but Comey is likely not on anybody's side. Indeed, it was reported that he was unhappy with the Trump team and the false allegations by the President that President Obama had the FBI spy on him.
He will likely reaffirm what has already been confirmed by the Senate and House intelligence heads: that Trump's tweet about wiretapping has no basis in fact.

But the key issue is whether he will confirm -- or punt -- a direct question about whether there is a criminal investigation into the Trump team's potential collusion with the Russians during the election. If he says yes, the political earth will shake.

Who is James Comey? 01:02
2. The rock star: Sally Yates
The early firing of Acting Attorney General Sally Yates was dubbed by many as Trump's "Monday Night Massacre."
Monday night massacre is a wake-up call to Senate Democrats
Monday night massacre is a wake-up call to Senate Democrats
Trump fired Yates for refusing to carry out his first Muslim immigration ban, but perhaps the most critical legacy of Yates' brief time as acting attorney general was her warning to the White House that a top adviser in the administration, then National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, could be compromised because of ties to Russia.
The White House did not do anything with the information until it was leaked to the press. What did Yates tell the White House? On Monday, she will testify and likely address this burning question.
3. The Real Housewives of the Intelligence Committee: David Nunes and Adam Schiff
Committee Chairman Devin Nunes was on Trump's transition team and remains unconvinced that Russia tried to help Trump, while the top Democrat, Adam Schiff, has not pulled any punches when it comes to his criticism of the President.
Schiff has also made it very clear that he plans to seek testimony from former MI6 officer Christopher Steele, the author of the unconfirmed dossier containing allegations about Trump's ties to Russia, as part of the committee's investigation.
GOP's Nunes: No evidence for wiretap claim

GOP's Nunes: No evidence for wiretap claim 01:08
Their relationship is, in Facebook terms, complicated. When Nunes recently conceded that there was no "there there" about the Trump wiretap claims, it was a significant moment -- for the first time he showed some independence from a White House that had used him as their proxy. Will that independence continue? Meanwhile, Schiff has emerged as a party star and will not let Nunes run away with the questioning or focus.
4. The MIA: Michael Flynn
One of the most relevant players in this inquiry will not be there. Flynn, who recently disclosed ties he had to Turkey during his work on the campaign, also received significant payments from Russia for speeches and work.
Did Michael Flynn break the law?

We have certainly not heard the last from Gen. Flynn, and it is only a matter of time before he is called before either the House or the Senate Intelligence Committee. We also do not know if he is assisting any investigation. In the meantime, the man who won't be present at the March 20 hearing will certainly be a key topic in the testimony of others.
5. The President: Donald Trump
I suspect he will be watching. His "wiretap" tweets have so captured our collective focus and time that it may be easy to forget just how damaging they were. But they are beside the point.

The real story is Russia: its influence on our elections and what Trump knew about it. This story and this investigation will continue on a path of the slow drip, drip, drip variety; there will be no smoking gun. This is just a preliminary hearing, and there are many more to come, including the Senate Intelligence Committee review.

Few in Congress have fallen in line with the Trump administration's call to dismiss these reports as "fake news," and so the longer the Russia issue drags on, the further the spin will shift away from partisan sour grapes. It will instead take the needed shape of a bipartisan demands for real answers.
The President may not be ready for it.
http://edition.cnn.com/2017/03/19/opini ... on-kaayem/




Anne Applebaum‏Verified account
@anneapplebaum

Trump's insane "GCHQ tapped my phone" theory came from...Moscow.
Still think Russan disinformation is a joke? http://www.rawstory.com/2017/03/report- ... ate-media/

11:02 AM - 19 Mar 2017


Image

Image

Report confirms Fox News’ Napolitano got his British Intelligence conspiracy theory from Russian state media
http://www.rawstory.com/2017/03/report- ... ate-media/


Report Confirms Fox News’ Napolitano Repeated Russian Media For His British Intelligence Conspiracy Theory
His false claims were cited by press secretary Sean Spicer to defend Trump’s baseless claims that Obama wiretapped Trump Tower.
http://www.alternet.org/media/report-co ... conspiracy
Mazars and Deutsche Bank could have ended this nightmare before it started.
They could still get him out of office.
But instead, they want mass death.
Don’t forget that.
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Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby conniption » Mon Mar 20, 2017 7:43 am

good god, slad. Will you please give it a rest...

change medications...
change jobs....
Please
... whatever it takes...
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Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby seemslikeadream » Mon Mar 20, 2017 7:45 am

^^^^^ :P

but keep up the personal attacks ...they are just fucking lovely


no way ....this is just starting to get good today ...can't wait

this guy is part of the White House Press now...would you like to defend him too......Please ... whatever it takes...?

Jerome Corsi‏
@jerome_corsi

NSA documents prove SURVEILLANCE of TRUMP and his FAMILY https://www.infowars.com/nsa-documents- ... lex-jones/ … breaking now -
Last edited by seemslikeadream on Mon Mar 20, 2017 7:51 am, edited 1 time in total.
Mazars and Deutsche Bank could have ended this nightmare before it started.
They could still get him out of office.
But instead, they want mass death.
Don’t forget that.
User avatar
seemslikeadream
 
Posts: 32090
Joined: Wed Apr 27, 2005 11:28 pm
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Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby kool maudit » Mon Mar 20, 2017 7:51 am

Anne Applebaum and Louise Mensch...

...can we get Samantha Power for the hat-trick?
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Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby seemslikeadream » Mon Mar 20, 2017 7:52 am

:jumping: :jumping:

another country heard from...are you a Corsi fan too?
Mazars and Deutsche Bank could have ended this nightmare before it started.
They could still get him out of office.
But instead, they want mass death.
Don’t forget that.
User avatar
seemslikeadream
 
Posts: 32090
Joined: Wed Apr 27, 2005 11:28 pm
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Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby conniption » Mon Mar 20, 2017 7:53 am

seemslikeadream » Mon Mar 20, 2017 4:45 am wrote:^^^^^ :P

no way ....this is just starting to get good today ...can't wait


fuck..
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Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby seemslikeadream » Mon Mar 20, 2017 7:54 am

I was prepared for this today I knew this shit would be posted

fuck...you can say that again...and again and again

might be a good idea to leave the personal attacks at the door though
Last edited by seemslikeadream on Mon Mar 20, 2017 7:57 am, edited 1 time in total.
Mazars and Deutsche Bank could have ended this nightmare before it started.
They could still get him out of office.
But instead, they want mass death.
Don’t forget that.
User avatar
seemslikeadream
 
Posts: 32090
Joined: Wed Apr 27, 2005 11:28 pm
Location: into the black
Blog: View Blog (83)

Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby conniption » Mon Mar 20, 2017 7:57 am

fuck
conniption
 
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Re: NSA Chief Russia Hacked '16 Election Congress Must Inves

Postby seemslikeadream » Mon Mar 20, 2017 7:58 am

actually I have said that every day since trumpty dumbty was elected

I have been waiting for this day since Wed Nov 16
Last edited by seemslikeadream on Mon Mar 20, 2017 7:59 am, edited 1 time in total.
Mazars and Deutsche Bank could have ended this nightmare before it started.
They could still get him out of office.
But instead, they want mass death.
Don’t forget that.
User avatar
seemslikeadream
 
Posts: 32090
Joined: Wed Apr 27, 2005 11:28 pm
Location: into the black
Blog: View Blog (83)

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