Today's Cartoon Threefer

(click on images to enlarge)


(Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution)


(Rob Rogers, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)


(Tim Eagan, via gocomics.com)

Another Thing For Putin To Gloat Over

Much like his U.S. puppet, Russian kleptocrat and murderous thug Vladimir Putin craves the world's notice and affirmation. He desperately wants Russia to reclaim the prestige that was lost with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Indeed, he said just before his fraudulent "re-election" that he'd reverse its collapse if he could. His aggression toward Ukraine, his thinly veiled threats against the Baltic States, and his recent bellicose statements about his missile technology all point to an authoritarian willing to push the limits to gain additional power in the region and the world, and recapture of the old territories of the Soviet Union.

The conquests are also happening on the international sports front, starting with the Sochi Winter Olympics. Now, the 2018 World Cup games in Russia, scheduled for June 14 to July 15, are the latest example of Moscow using international sports as a tool of propaganda and aggrandizement. Russia was awarded hosting rights in 2010 under suspicious circumstances, long before their invasion of Crimea in 2014 and their meddling in elections in Europe and the U.S., and participation in Syrian genocide. While none of the 32 nations sending teams to the World Cup have withdrawn yet, several countries have joined the UK in boycotting the state diplomatic ceremonies for the games.

An actual boycott of the games by the 32 national teams is not going to happen, unless Moscow invades another neighbor before then. Even then, there's an enormous amount of money tied up in the quadrennial games for all participants. Going forward, what should happen at a minimum is FIFA -- the sponsoring organization -- should be enjoined by a majority of its member states from ever holding the World Cup games in Russia again. Putin has to be firmly denied his sought-after prestige events, which is helping to fuel his ambition.

Oh, The Putrid Irony!

Noted serial sexual assaulter, p*ssy- grabber, porn star fornicator, ad nauseam Donald "Rump" Trump has officially jumped the shark.  To get the sick, clueless irony, here are the key passages from a very sincere Proclamation issued yesterday (our emphasis & annotations):

President Donald J. Trump Proclaims April 2018 as National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month [Gag. Vomit.]

During National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, we remain steadfast in our efforts to stop crimes of sexual violence, provide care for victims, enforce the law, prosecute offenders, and raise awareness about the many forms of sexual assault. We must continue our work to eliminate sexual assault from our society and promote safe relationships, homes, and communities. ["Starting with me, President Spanky," he didn't say.]

Sexual assault crimes remain tragically common in our society, and offenders too often evade accountability. These heinous crimes are committed indiscriminately: in intimate relationships, in public spaces, and in the workplace. [eg., by President Spanky]

We must respond to sexual assault by identifying and holding perpetrators accountable. Too often, however, the victims of assault remain silent. They may fear retribution from their offender, lack faith in the justice system, or have difficulty confronting the pain associated with the traumatic experience. [Perhaps some hush money can do the trick, or a threat of violence.] My Administration is committed to raising awareness about sexual assault and to empowering victims to identify perpetrators so that they can be held accountable. We must make it as easy as possible for those who have suffered from sexual assault to alert the authorities and to speak about the experience with their family and friends. [Or they could, for example, sell their story exclusively to The National Enquirer and watch it get buried.]

When victims seek help, responses must be carefully tailored to the context in which the sexual assault occurred and the unique needs of each victim. To better assist victims, the Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women has developed the Sexual Assault Victim Intervention Services Technical Assistance Center (SAVIS TAC). This new resource will help community officials and organizations appropriately respond to sexual assault by expanding their understanding of the type of support likely to be effective in each unique circumstance. Participants in the SAVIS TAC initiative will use available funds to provide intensive training and resources to service providers. With these resources, service providers, including rape crisis centers and other sexual assault and domestic violence organizations can build organizational and staff capacity for providing comprehensive sexual assault victim intervention services. [Need to set up a large special corps to support responses regarding the actions of President Spanky, a.k.a David Dennison]

Together, during Sexual Assault Awareness Month, we recommit ourselves to doing our part to help stop sexual violence. We must not be afraid to talk about sexual assualt and sexual assult prevention with our loved ones, in our communities, and with those who have experienced these tragedies. We must encourage victims to report sexual assault and law enforcement to hold offenders accountable, and we must support victims and survivors unremmittingly. [Send reports to Michael Avenatti, c/o Stormy Daniels] Through a concerted effort to better educate ourselves, empower victims, and punish criminals, our Nation will move closer to ending the grief, fear, and suffering caused by sexual assult[sic]. The prevention of sexual violence is everyone’s concern. [Except for President Spanky, who has been above the law up to now.]

You feel like you stepped through the looking glass with Alice? Us, too.

(Photo:  President Spanky -- "Did you bring the magazine with my picture on the cover?")

Laura Ingraham "Taking Week Off" (In Futile Search For Her Soul? Update Resume?)

Awww:

Fox News show host Laura Ingraham announced on her show late Friday that she is taking next week off, after almost a dozen advertisers dropped her show after the conservative pundit mocked a teenage survivor of the Florida school massacre on Twitter.

Here's the latest update on the companies no longer advertising on Ingraham's Fox "News" hate fest:

The companies announcing that they are cancelling their ads are: Nutrish, the pet food line created by celebrity chef Rachael Ray, travel website TripAdvisor Inc (TRIP.O), online home furnishings seller Wayfair Inc (W.N), the world’s largest packaged food company, Nestle SA (NESN.S), online streaming service Hulu, travel website Expedia Group Inc (EXPE.O) and online personal shopping service Stitch Fix (SFIX.O). 

According to CBS News, four other companies joined the list Friday: the home office supply store Office Depot, the dieting company Jenny Craig, the Atlantis, Paradise Island resort and Johnson & Johnson which produces pharmaceuticals as well as consumer products such as Band-Aids, Neutrogena beauty products and Tylenol.

It was almost a year ago that fellow Fox fascist Bill "O'Liely" O'Reilly, under fire for multiple sexual harassment claims accompanied by the flight of advertisers on his show, announced a surprise, unscheduled vacation -- during which he was fired from the network.  May the same fate befall the odious Ms. Ingraham (though she would be replaced by another odious creature -- you've noticed Fox has lots of them).

BONUS:  Interesting tidbit --

A telling thing about fallout from Ingraham's slam on on Parkland FL HS shooting survivor turned activist David Hogg: Hulu is among the advertisers pulling out. Fox News' parent company, 21st Century Fox, owns 30% of Hulu.  https://t.co/u14ZkoyacO

— David Folkenflik (@davidfolkenflik) March 30, 2018

And some "thoughts and prayers" from "God":

Everyone knows that in Fox News land ‘going on vacation’ means ‘you’re cancelled!’

In this holiest of weeks, sending Laura Ingraham thoughts and prayers.

— God (@TheGoodGodAbove) March 31, 2018

Republican Crime Blotter: The Panty Pincher

A Republican judge on Long Island, NY was charged with stealing the underwear of neighborhood women today, and released on $50,000 bond. Judge Robert Cicale was arrested yesterday in East Islip after he was caught near the home of a 23 year-old neighbor with his raincoat pockets stuffed with panties that he took from a hamper. He apparently had stolen panties from the victim and others on multiple occasions previously. Cicale, who is married with three children, was relieved of all judicial duties following his arrest.

It will be interesting to see the briefs in this case.

(photo: Judge Cicale at an earlier time, possibly contemplating his next panty raid)

Today's Cartoons

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(Adam Zyglis, The Buffalo News)


(Joel Pett, Lexington Herald-Leader)


(Clay Bennett, Chattanooga Times Free Press)


(Mike Smith, Las Vegas Sun)

Breathe Deeply, It May Be Your Last Chance

While media focus is largely on the escapades of sexual predator and sociopath Donald "Rump" Trump's (a.k.a. President Spanky), his flying monkeys in government are enacting some horrific and damaging policies, replacing those that were put in place by President Obama and his predecessors. The Associated Press is reporting that Rump's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is set to announce a roll back of auto mileage standards, which were key to Obama's climate change initiatives and which will add to the carbon pollution in this country if curtailed or recinded. The current regulations call for new vehicles to have a 36 mpg standard for highway traffic by 2025.

Relatively lower gas prices have made the purchase of larger and less fuel efficient vehicles possible. Automakers are telling the Rump administration that they need relief from the standards, given the shift in public tastes. The main problem for Rump's climate despoilers is that progressive California's standards are at the 36 mpg level and a dozen states follow California's standards, involving roughly a third of vehicles sold in the U.S.

Much of what animates sociopath Rump is his deep envy and all-consuming hatred of President Obama, who towers far above him in achievements, popularity and character. Rump knows that and it eats him alive, so he needs to destroy any legacy of his. But it's also the mission of right-wing corporate vandals that have joined Rump's swamp creatures in D.C., doing the bidding of the fossil fuel and auto industries as they do under every Rethuglican administration. The solution? Organize, register and vote this November and every election to send them and their dirty baggage packing. Compromised air quality and climate change  denial may not be the immediate danger posed by rampant gun nuttery, but it's a species killer in the long run and has to be opposed.

(photo: Here's your mega-monster guzzler, 40 gallons per mile. Gun rack optional!)

Weekend Honey Sweet Music

We're sticking with groups from Manchester, UK, this week:  Blossoms released "Honey Sweet" off their self- titled debut album in August 2016. Hope you enjoy.

A Low Barr (UPDATED)

Let's take a trip down memory lane with Roseanne Barr, neo-fascist con man Donald "Rump" Trump's favorite "comedian."

First, her embrace of conspiracy theories almost make Rump look sane. "Pizzagate," the lies about Seth Rich's murder, they're all there. (See update below) She's even got a despicable one about the Parkland school massacre.

Second, her cruel satire on the Holocaust, dressing up as Hitler and "baking" what she claimed were Palestinians to protest their treatment by Israel:

The photo is real. @therealroseanne burned cookies that looked like people in an oven while dressed as Adolph Hitler. I am actually crying. I think of the anguish of my family. I think of this little boy, Antosh, my sons' great uncle, murdered at 11. One of Roseanne's cookies. pic.twitter.com/rEWWk6ezfW

— Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) March 29, 2018

Third, this Trumpian über-patriot deliberately butchered the national anthem back in July 1990 at a San Diego Padres baseball game (no link, mercifully), spitting and grabbing her crotch (what, Rump wasn't available?). 

Undoubtedly, her reboot show will get plaudits from the Beltway journos who specialize in interpreting the manufactured "economic angst" and mood of the goobers that voted for Rump as viewed through Barr's nasty eyes. Just as long as they give you the full picture of the low bar we're dealing with.

UPDATE:  Not to put too fine a point on it, but she's absolutely bonkers.

President Spanky's "Douche-henge"

The other day, not long after he signed the $1.3 trillion spending bill with piddling funding for "border security" (not the border wall Mexico was supposed to pay for), white supremacist con man Donald "Rump" Trump (a.k.a., "President Spanky") was trying to keep up the con for his mouth- breathing base:

Great briefing this afternoon on the start of our Southern Border WALL! pic.twitter.com/pmCNoxxlkH

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 28, 2018

The fact is that those pictures Rump used were of a 2- mile stretch of what was a scrap metal barrier in Calexico (dating back to the '90s) being replaced, an upgrade that had been planned for years.

Last night on CNN, Republican strategist/ wit Rick Wilson had a good summary of what's going on here: 

“The fundamental promise is ‘I will keep the brown people away from you,'. The modality is ‘I will build a wall. Mexico will pay for it.’ There is no wall. There is no funding for a wall. He’s got these four pieces of concrete, sample sections in California, which I call ‘Douche-henge.’ It’s a symbol for these people, these suckers that believe the wall is real.” (our emphasis)

We've checked Rump's Twitter feed so you don't have to, and yes, there are many suckers who "think" the wall is going up and Rump is keeping his promise. (Sic transit gloria, America.)

Once again, to be clear, this is the totality of Rump's wall -- pardon -- "Douche- henge:"

Court To Governor: Take A Walk(er)

Wisconsin Rethugs have been trying mightily in the past three months to rob some Wisconsinites of their right to representation by blocking special elections to fill two legislative vacancies, elections which are required under state law. They apparently feared Dem wins like those recently suffered nationwide. The matter was taken to trial court and then to appellate court, where Wisconsin Gov. and Koch Co. employee of the year Scott "Koch Head" Walker and his Rethug allies in the Wisconsin Senate flopped in both trials. When those un-American attempts failed, Walker and his fellow Rethugs were in the process of changing state elections law to deny those citizens the right to representation. But in a victory for Dems and democracy, they announced today that they would drop the obstruction and comply with the order of the courts. The retreat was due in part to both public outrage over the obstruction, and the appellate court's strongly worded rebuke of Walker by state appellate court Judge Paul Reilly:

"We know of no law that allows us to disregard the (statute). Representative government and the election of our representatives are never 'unnecessary,' never a 'waste of taxpayer resources,' and the calling of the special elections are, as the governor acknowledges, his 'obligation.'"

Translation: "Do your damn job, Scottie." The primary elections for the two seats will occur in May, and the general elections will occur in June.

Watch Wisconsin in the 2018 mid-term elections. The state went narrowly for Rump, thanks to a number of delusional Jill Stein voters and thousands of Dem stay-at-homes; it's likely to regain its position as a blue state this time if Dems come out in droves and fight back.

(photo: He let his plutocrat bosses down; no bonus for you this year.)

Today's Cartoons

(click on images to enlarge)


(Jack Ohman, Sacramento Bee)


(Rob Rogers, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)


(Steve Sack, Minneapolis Star Tribune)


(Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

The Grifters Are Coming For The Department of Veterans Affairs

Cadet Bone Spurs continued his rampage through his own cabinet, announcing a change at the Department of Veterans Affairs through -- how else -- twitter:

I am pleased to announce that I intend to nominate highly respected Admiral Ronny L. Jackson, MD, as the new Secretary of Veterans Affairs....

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 28, 2018

You may recall Dr. Ronny as the White (Supremacist) House doctor who "examined" Cadet Bone Spurs and declared the obese, exercise- phobic lump to be in "excellent" condition;  he reported Cadet Bone Spurs also took the Montreal Cognitive Mental Test and was able to identify drawings of a lion, a rhinoceros and a camel -- therefore, sane! Most importantly, he has zero experience running any operation anywhere near the size of the VA. A little ass- kissing of Cadet Bone Spurs, no matter how blatantly risible (or psychologically damaging - ewww), will do wonders for your career (until it doesn't).

Outgoing Administrator David Shulkin was quick with his explanation for the ouster: 

... Unfortunately, the department has become entangled in a brutal power struggle, with some political appointees choosing to promote their agendas instead of what’s best for veterans. These individuals, who seek to privatize veteran health care as an alternative to government-run V.A. care, unfortunately fail to engage in realistic plans regarding who will care for the more than 9 million veterans who rely on the department for life-sustaining care. 

The private sector, already struggling to provide adequate access to care in many communities, is ill-prepared to handle the number and complexity of patients that would come from closing or downsizing V.A. hospitals and clinics, particularly when it involves the mental health needs of people scarred by the horrors of war. Working with community providers to adequately ensure that veterans’ needs are met is a good practice. But privatization leading to the dismantling of the department’s extensive health care system is a terrible idea. The department’s understanding of service-related health problems, its groundbreaking research and its special ability to work with military veterans cannot be easily replicated in the private sector. 

I have fought to stand up for this great department and all that it embodies. In recent months, though, the environment in Washington has turned so toxic, chaotic, disrespectful and subversive that it became impossible for me to accomplish the important work that our veterans need and deserve. I can assure you that I will continue to speak out against those who seek to harm the V.A. by putting their personal agendas in front of the well-being of our veterans. 

As many of you know, I am a physician, not a politician. I came to government with an understanding that Washington can be ugly, but I assumed that I could avoid all of the ugliness by staying true to my values. I have been falsely accused of things by people who wanted me out of the way. But despite these politically-based attacks on me and my family’s character, I am proud of my record and know that I acted with the utmost integrity. Unfortunately, none of that mattered. 

As I prepare to leave government, I am struck by a recurring thought: It should not be this hard to serve your country.  (our emphasis)

Now with Shulkin's departure, as with so many other Federal functions being scrutinized for privatization (i.e, profit centers for Cadet Bone Spurs' cronies), the VA is especially vulnerable to for- profit vultures like this.  Having Dr. Ronny at the helm means there will be no one with the stature or guts to stand up to the grifters who see a privatized, scaled- down system of veterans care as a potential cash cow. No doubt Dr. Ronny's diagnosis, after a careful "examination," will be that a privatized VA will be "excellent."

Laura Ingraham: Still A Soul-Sick Liar [UPDATED]

Last night on her show-for-deplorables-by-a-deplorable, bigoted neo-fascist shrieker Laura Ingraham suggested that sanctuary cities, particularly San Francisco, had been turned into hell holes by those brown people:

"Do you blame Orange County for voting the way they did, given the fact that they don't want Orange County to turn into San Francisco? Meaning, they don't want the hypodermic needles in the streets, they don't want the human feces all over all these blocks...They don't want what San Francisco has, double the rate of the state crime rate."

Ingraham wants her viewers to believe the false narrative that sanctuary cities are a haven for criminals, etc., when in fact crime in those cities isn't affected by their sanctuary status one way or the other.  Sounds like feces from Ingraham to us.

Ingraham has a long, vile history of bigotry, as Media Matters has noted, but her hate speech isn't limited to the Hispanic community. She's found a new target for that: the student survivors of the Majory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre. Yesterday on Twitter, she mocked activist David Hogg for being rejected by four colleges, and received a sharp and righteous rejoinder from Hogg's 14 year-old sister, Lauren:

How low are your ratings @IngrahamAngle that you have to start attacking my brother’s grades to get attention? If you ask me, he is more articulate than you and has far better character. Man, that’s real low even for you. Coming from a 14 year old, please grow up. #NeverAgain https://t.co/CgUVeGRfxP

— Lauren Hogg (@lauren_hoggs) March 28, 2018

David also joined in by tweeting the top 12 advertisers on Ingraham's sh*tfest:

Pick a number 1-12 contact the company next to that #

Top Laura Ingraham Advertisers
1. @sleepnumber
2. @ATT
3. Nutrish
4. @Allstate & @esurance
5. @Bayer
6. @RocketMortgage Mortgage
7. @LibertyMutual
8. @Arbys
9. @TripAdvisor
10. @Nestle
11. @hulu
12. @Wayfair

— David Hogg (@davidhogg111) March 29, 2018

Let's help the Parkland survivors in a tangible way and contact the advertisers to let them know that you won't be buying their products as long as they advertise there.

UPDATE: The first of hopefully many advertisers is leaving Ingraham's sh*tfest:

We are in the process of removing our ads from Laura Ingraham’s program.

— Nutrish (@Nutrish) March 29, 2018

UPDATE II:  You can add Wayfair and TripAdvisor.

UPDATE III: Nestle, too.

UPDATE IV:  Goodbye Hulu and Johnson & Johnson!

(photo: RNC. Letting her true colors show)

Stephen Colbert Interviews "John Bolton" And His Mustache "Gen. Snowball"

A little gallows humor from Stephen Colbert last night, as he talks with the one person in the White House who may be more unstable than the Very Stable Genius:

Today's Cartoon

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(Brendan Loper, The New Yorker)

Tweets Of The Day - Shafted By President Spanky

Ann Coulter is still the devil in human form, but I can't lie... I lol'd at this. pic.twitter.com/st6gcCRh9y

— Caroline O. (@RVAwonk) March 26, 2018

Mid-Week Heartbeat Song

Waaaaay back in 1965, the British Invasion was in full flower: The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Kinks, The Hollies, The Yardbirds, the list goes on and on of the groups and their amazing music that they brought to American audiences. Before rock music later turned more serious and complex, a Manchester group, Herman's Hermits, had this light, very catchy, teens-falling-in-love pop tune that reached #2 on the charts that spring.

Pro-Gun Drunks Vandalized Parkland Memorial

The perpetrators of the theft and vandalism at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas massacre memorial last Sunday turn out to be the usual suspects. Arrested and being held on bail were two low-lifes, who appear to have no permanent addresses: Michael Kennedy and his companion Kara O'Neil were arrested after they were observed tearing down banners and removing items like teddy bears, trophies and a shadowbox with pictures of the slain from the makeshift memorial to honor the 17 victims of the February 14 shooting. Kennedy has a long criminal record, including convictions for burglary, drug distribution and domestic violence. He's been in and out of jail and halfway houses for the better part of the last 15 years.

The couple were arrested when a Broward County deputy sheriff saw them handling objects from the memorial in the back of their car, which had expired tags and which was parked in a "no parking" zone. Police also observed a bottle of vodka in the front seat. An apparently drunk Kennedy told the arresting officers, “I ripped down the anti-gun banner because I am pro-gun." Just the kind of guy with a record that you want to be "pro-gun."

With his previous convictions, this latest felony should land Kennedy in jail for a long time. Parkland Commissioner Ken Cutler commented about the vandalism and theft, “It’s overwhelming. For somebody to steal from a memorial for children who were shot, it’s just overwhelming.”

(Photo: Mug shots of Kennedy and O'Neil; all that's missing are the Trump MAGA hats.)

Your Occasional "Don't Despair" Polling

Of course, this won't happen in November unless we stay energized, organize, contribute, and VOTE.

#BREAKING: Democrats come within 5% of flipping an AL state lege. seat that Trump won by 22%, Romney by 33. The average swing in special elections is D+13.

Per my models, Dems are heading for the biggest wave election since the GOP revolution in 1994https://t.co/lyfCuiTd40 pic.twitter.com/7SW6RRHYod

— G. Elliott Morris📈🤷‍♂️ (@gelliottmorris) March 28, 2018

Be Respectful. It's PRESIDENT Spanky

Stephen Colbert's monologue last night took a tour of the recent pratfalls of narcissistic sociopath Donald "Rump" Trump and his dwindling team, from the "DO NOT CONGRATULATE" warning regarding the Putin phone call to the Stormy Saga and her recounting of her Rump encounter.

Today's Cartoons

(click on images to enlarge)


(Matt Davies, Newsday)


(Matt Wuerker, Politico)


(Rob Rogers, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)


(Dan Wasserman, Boston Globe)

Willard Romney, Ever The Charlatan

It's campaign season for 2018, and human replica and "corporations are people" theorist Willard "Mittens" Romney has discovered a position that he can disingenuously run on: tougher on immigration than bigot and xenophobe Donald "Rump" Trump.

Speaking at an event in his adopted state of Massachusetts Colorado California Michigan Utah, Mittens slipped on his tough guy pants and declared:

"I’m also more of a hawk on immigration than even the president. My view was these DACA kids shouldn’t all be allowed to stay in the country legally."

Clearly, "self-deportation" fan Mittens has re-activated that bigoted political sensory chip, stuck a wet digit in the air, and decided to go full xenophobe on the Dreamers, that is until he makes another run for President and decides he needs "the Hispanics." Let's hope between now and then that Mittens doesn't suggest transporting them out in car top carriers. That's for dogs.

(photo: Back at you, Willard!)

Of Worms And Saudi Princes

Foreign news items:

1) Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman appears to be moving forward with a proposed 10 - 20 year alliance with Putin's Russia governing OPEC and Russian oil production which would cut oil production when prices fall. Until now, agreements between the big oil producers have been on a year-to-year basis. The move is seen in part as a response to increased U.S. shale oil production. Recently, unfit would-be autocrat Donald "Rump" Trump boasted about billions in arms sales to the Saudis, the announcement of which was bungled by Rump in an embarrassing White (Supremacist) House meeting with Salman. Here's oil in your face, Sal.

2) Alan Duncan, a British foreign affairs ministry official, when asked in the House of Commons about the status of  Julian "Little Worm" Assange, the founder of the Russian cut-out WikiLeaks and also Rump's bestie, replied,

“It’s of great regret that Julian Assange remains in the Ecuador embassy. It’s about time that this miserable little worm walked out of the embassy and gave himself up to British justice.” (emphasis added)

Assange has been holed up in the embassy since 2012, a fugitive from Swedish police who wanted to question him about sex crimes and from British authorities for jumping bail before entering the embassy. Assange claims to fear extradition to the U.S. for publishing U.S. military and diplomatic secrets if he leaves the embassy, but given his friend in the Oval Office, he may end up in a private suite at Mar-A-Lago.

Tweets Of The Day -- "Need A Lawyer?"

Bob Schooley has some solutions for un- indicted co- conspirator Donald "Rump" Trump's difficulty in finding legal representation.  Make the call -- now!

"Hold for the President please..." pic.twitter.com/emvvx98cdc

— Schooley (@Rschooley) March 27, 2018

"Hold for the President please..." pic.twitter.com/hZvk43wym5

— Schooley (@Rschooley) March 27, 2018

"Hold for the President please..." pic.twitter.com/CICACjDJ5l

— Schooley (@Rschooley) March 27, 2018

(That last dude should pass muster now that Rump has become de- sensitized to facial hair, thanks to John "Yosemite Sam" Bolton.)

Adultery And Prenups Don't Mix

Many have taken notice of the fact that serial sexual predator and liar Donald "Rump" Trump won't personally challenge adult film star Stormy Daniels' account of their affair in 2006, preferring to let his lawyer / fixer Michael "Roy Cohn" Cohen and spokesliars do that for him. Inside the 2016 Rump campaign's final weeks, the explosion of allegations from multiple women of assault by Rump (along with the confirmatory Access Hollywood tape) had staffers on edge, according to the Daily Beast:

"But in that final month on the trail, there was something else weighing on Trump’s mind, even more than the assault allegations. According to three top campaign officials, speaking to The Daily Beast on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations, Trump began pressing senior staffers about the specific dates that the women were alleging that the assaults, affairs, or harassment took place." (emphasis added)

It's noteworthy that the dates were so important to him. The article continues:

"If the date fell within the time period of the early stage of his marriage to Melania Trump—and the birth of their son Barron—Trump would suddenly care more about the story and quiz campaign aides more closely about it. Officials concluded that Trump’s true concern was not so much being accused of sexual harassment as it was, in the words of one aide, about 'pissing off Melania.'” (emphasis added)

There are numerous articles about what would happen if the Rumps divorced, for example here, here, and here. What's not clear yet is whether their prenuptial agreement would be voided in whole or part if one or the other engaged in an adulterous affair, but it's doubtlessly one or the other. When it's proven that he engaged in affairs (with Daniels and Karen McDougal) while married to his wife, in violation of the prenup, Ms. Rump would stand to cash in bigly. That is what  the dates and "pissing off Melania" is all about; he doesn't care about her humiliation, her anger, or her betrayal. He's thinking about their prenuptial agreement stripping him of a lot of money / property if she decides to divorce, which we hope she does at the right time.

Right-Wing Gun Fondlers Going After Teen Emma Gonzalez (UPDATED)

Just when you thought they couldn't go lower, the gun fondling lizards manage to do it. Here's how they're fighting back against the March For Our Lives movement and bullying one of its leaders, 18- year- old Parkland massacre survivor Emma Gonzalez.

They doctor photos:

At left is @tyler_mitchell’s photo of @Emma4Change for the cover of @TeenVogue. At right is what so-called “Gun Rights Activists” have photoshopped it into. #MarchForOurLives pic.twitter.com/jW6tTOv2Db

— Phillip Picardi (@pfpicardi) March 25, 2018

Instead of ripping up a gun range target, they've photoshopped her ripping up the Constitution.

Alt- right Neo- Nazi shit-twit hub "Gab" appears to be the main culprit here:

Actor Adam Baldwin [Alec's half- wit brother] tweeted the doctored video to his over 200,000 followers. The Twitter account for Gab, a social network popular with the alt-right that’s similar to Twitter, also shared the video, which now has more than 1,700 retweets. Gab has also been tweeting other altered photos and memes of González.

They slur her:

That, of course, is from notorious Republican racist and white supremacist Rep. Steve "Cantaloupe Calves" King (R - Children of the Corn).

You may recall earlier this month one Republican shitweasel attacked her sexuality (he since dropped out of the race he was running in):

A Republican candidate for the Maine House of Representatives has used Twitter to attack two students who survived a mass shooting at a Florida high school, calling one of them a "skinhead lesbian" and the other a "bald-faced liar." 

"There is nothing about this skinhead lesbian that impresses me and there is nothing that she has to say unless you're frothing at the mouth moonbat," Leslie Gibson wrote about 18-year-old Emma Gonzalez, one of the most visible student activists to emerge from the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, which left 17 people dead.

Nothing says, "We care about our children; they're the future of our country" than these bullying attacks on a courageous, articulate teenager who's doing more -- under the most difficult circumstances -- to make this a better America than all the aforementioned penis- compensating right- wingers combined ever have or ever will.

UPDATE:  Vox has a summary of the right- wing attacks on the Parkland teens.  Disgusting morons.

Monday Reading

As always, please go to the links for the full articles.

Has he tried Dewey, Cheatham and Howe?

As President Trump heads into one of the most critical phases of the special counsel’s investigation, his personal legal team has shrunk to essentially just one member, and he is struggling to find any top lawyers willing to represent him. 

Working for a president is usually seen as a dream job. But leading white-collar lawyers in Washington and New York have repeatedly spurned overtures to take over the defense of Mr. Trump, a mercurial client who often ignores his advisers’ guidance. In some cases, lawyers’ firms have blocked any talks, fearing a backlash that would hurt business. 

The president lost two lawyers in just the past four days, including one who had been on board for less than a week. 

Joseph diGenova, a longtime Washington lawyer who has pushed theories on Fox News that the F.B.I. made up evidence against Mr. Trump, left the team on Sunday. He had been hired last Monday, three days before the head of the president’s personal legal team, John Dowd, quit after determining that the president was not listening to his advice. Mr. Trump had also considered hiring Mr. diGenova’s wife, Victoria Toensing, but she will also not join the team. 

That leaves the president with just one personal lawyer who is working full time on the special counsel’s investigation as Mr. Trump is facing one of the most significant decisions related to it: whether to sit for an interview.

That lawyer, Jay Sekulow, is a conservative commentator who made his name on religious freedom cases. Mr. Sekulow is in talks with other lawyers about joining the team, although it is not clear how far those discussions have progressed. 

Special Counsel Robert Mueller's A- Team against (heehee) lawyer / grifter Jay Sekulow. That's just not fair (and fittingly so!).

Yet another reason to loathe these hypocritical gargoyles:

Televangelist Frances Swaggart, the wife of Jimmy Swaggart, on Monday suggested that the students who participated in the March for Our Lives over the weekend were like ‘demonic’ Nazis and Adolf Hitler. 

During the Frances & Friends program, Swaggart reacted to an estimated 800,000 people who called for gun control by marching in Washington, D.C. over the weekend. 

“People have got to address the fact that kids today are being put in school where there’s no morals,” the television evangelist announced. “Because we’ve taken God out of the school. And there’s no resistance then to anything that Satan throws these kids’ way.” 

“Today’s gun control and confiscation rally was nothing new,” she added, reading from a paper provided by a fellow panelist. “Nazis and leftists have been using children for decades in their attempts to take guns away from law-abiding citizens.”

Bibi (Rump's Israeli cheerleader) been bad:

Israeli police questioned Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday over his alleged dealings with the country’s largest telecommunication company, a police spokesman said, one of three corruption cases weighing on the prime minister’s political future.  

It was the second time Netanyahu has been questioned in the investigation into allegations he awarded regulatory favours to Bezeq Telecom Israel in return for favourable coverage on a news site the company’s owner controls. [snip]

Two former Netanyahu confidants have agreed to turn state’s witness in the case. One is Shlomo Filber, the former director general of the Communications Ministry; the other is Nir Hefetz, a former Netanyahu spokesman.  

A nice, fitting honor:

The ashes of Professor Stephen Hawking will be interred next to the grave of Sir Isaac Newton at Westminster Abbey, it has been revealed. 

The renowned theoretical physicist's final resting place will also be near that of Charles Darwin, who was buried there in 1882. 

Prof Hawking, who had motor neurone disease, died on 14 March, aged 76, at his home in Cambridge.

That piece was found at Infidel 753's link round-up, which has dozens more places to visit. Check it out.

Tweets Of The Day: Ass Clown

Memo to Gen. Kelly:
Stormy Daniels reports that the @POTUS became more compliant after been spanked.
Desperate times demand desperate measures.

— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) March 26, 2018

🤷🏼‍♂️ It’s going to be weird though when people shrug off the threats because they already assume Trump does business like a low rent mobster.

— Schooley (@Rschooley) March 25, 2018

I think the evangelicals are gonna need more Mulligans...

— Joy Reid (@JoyAnnReid) March 26, 2018

Hey, .@realDonaldTrump... Here's a cover to hang up in your country clubs. pic.twitter.com/znsR6iY0Si

— The Hoarse Whisperer (@HoarseWisperer) March 26, 2018

 And something sure to infuriate Cadet Bone Spurs:

CBS press release says Stormy Daniels gave 60 Minutes its highest ratings since a 2008 interview with Barack and Michelle Obama.

— Josh Dawsey (@jdawsey1) March 26, 2018

Today's Tomorrow Cartoon -- Black Hole

(click on image to enlarge)


(Tom Tomorrow, via Daily Kos)

Santorum Continues To Be A Soulless Jerk

A lot of ugly things have come out of the smarmy mouth of former right-wing Republican Sen. Rick "Frothy Mix" Santorum over the years. Yesterday on CNN, Santorum outdid himself in outrageous punditry when he suggested that students should be learning CPR in the event of shootings at their schools:

“How about kids instead of looking to someone else to solve their problem, do something about maybe taking CPR classes or trying to deal with situations that when there is a violent shooter that you can actually respond to that.”

Yeah kids, don't look to Rethuglican wingnuts like me to pass gun control legislation, just deal with the results of our malicious, callous neglect. As Marjory Stoneman Douglas activists / students David and Lauren Hogg pointed out this morning, no amount of CPR will help a student shot in the head with a round from an AR-15.

The question that comes to mind in hearing Frothy Mix's take on school shooting is, "why is this s.o.b. given air time by CNN in the first place? Was there no drunk at a Klan rally available?"

(photo: Santorum's high school photo. Guarantee you, that young sociopath would never have administered CPR on anyone)

Stormy's Big Night

To recap the 60 Minutes dark and Stormy night interview, the main new revelations involved the threats and bullying applied to Stormy Daniels by Michael "Roy Cohn" Cohen, sociopath Donald "Rump" Trump's thuggish longtime lawyer and fixer, and a so far unknown tough from Trumpworld. In one chilling story, Daniels told of an unknown man approaching her in the parking lot of a fitness club in Las Vegas while she was getting her infant daughter out of the car. According to Daniels, the man said:

"Leave Trump alone. Forget the story....That's a beautiful little girl. It'd be a shame if something happened to her mom."

Very organized crime, no? There was also the additional intimidation by Cohen and hints that if she didn't sign the non-disclosure agreement and subsequent statements that she didn't have sex with Rump that something bad would happen to her.

This is all further fuel for the unfolding Stormy Saga, with fixer Cohen's payment of $130,000 to Daniels days before the election being seen increasingly as an illegal in-kind campaign contribution.
Also, despite Cohen's denial that Rump was out of the loop on the hush agreement money, Daniels' lawyer produced evidence that e-mails and a FedEx package containing the hush agreement itself were sent to Cohen at Trump Towers in his official capacity.

No tapes, pics, texts, etc. this time. There were the expected tidbits about their sexual encounter, most if not all of which have been previously reported. In a particularly gagging moment (and there were several), Daniels again described the evening in 2006 that she had sex with the degenerate Rump, and of course, his lusted-after daughter Ivanka came up:

Stormy Daniels: He quit talking about himself and he asked me things and I asked him things and it just became like more appropriate.

Anderson Cooper: It became more comfortable.

Stormy Daniels: Yeah. He was like, 'Wow, you-- you are special. You remind me of my daughter.' You know-- he was like, "You're smart and beautiful, and a woman to be reckoned with, and I like you. I like you." (emphasis added)

Playboy model and another of Rump's partners, Karen McDougal, also said that Rump likened her to his daughter during their 10-month long affair in 2006-2007. What kind of pathetic, sick POS links his daughter to the woman he's about to have sex with? The pathetic, sick POS in the White (Supremacist) House, that's who.

Across The Universe, Cont. -- "A Red, Metal-Rich Relic"

(click on image to enlarge)



From NASA/ ESA, March 19, 2018:  This idyllic scene, packed with glowing galaxies, has something truly remarkable at its core: an untouched relic of the ancient Universe. This relic can be seen in the large galaxy at the centre of the frame, a lenticular galaxy named NGC 1277. This galaxy is a member of the famous Perseus Cluster — one of the most massive objects in the known Universe, located some 220 million light-years from Earth.

NGC 1277 has been dubbed a “relic of the early Universe” because all of its stars appear to have formed about 12 billion years ago. To put this in perspective, the Big Bang is thought to have happened 13.8 billion years ago. Teeming with billions of old, metal-rich stars, this galaxy is also home to many ancient globular clusters: spherical bundles of stars that orbit a galaxy like satellites. Uniquely, the globuar clusters of NGC 1277 are mostly red and metal-rich — very different to the blue, metal-poor clusters usually seen around similarly-sized galaxies. In astronomy, a metal is any element heavier than hydrogen and helium; these heavier elements are fused together in the hot cores of massive stars and scattered throughout the Universe when these stars explode as they die. In this way, a star’s metal content is related to its age: stars that form later contain greater amounts of metal-rich material, since previous generations of stars have enriched the cosmos from which they are born.

Massive galaxies — and their globular clusters — are thought to form in two phases: first comes an early collapse accompanied by a giant burst of star formation, which forms red, metal-rich clusters, followed by a later accumulation of material, which brings in bluer, metal-poor material. The discovery of NGC 1277’s red clusters confirms that the galaxy is a genuine antique that bypassed this second phase, raising important questions for scientists on how galaxies form and evolve: a hotly debated topic in modern astronomy.

Credit: NASA, ESA, and M. Beasley (Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias)

Still The Forgotten Americans

They are 3.3 million strong, as American as any Pennsylvanian or Iowan or Californian. Yet six months after the devastation of Hurricane Maria on September 20, 2017, the people of Puerto Rico are still struggling with daily life. Areas of the island remain without power, or with intermittent power, affecting nearly 500,000 Puerto Ricans. That's impacted not only the light you expect when you flip a switch, or electricity for cooking. It's had a devastating impact on the health situation, with diseases on the increase and medical services impaired. The devastation and slow recovery has resulted in a doubling of suicide hotline calls in the past six months.

The stories of hardship and desperation on the island are heart wrenching, as they are infuriating. The callous ineptitude shown by unfit sociopath Donald "Rump" Trump -- who threw rolls of paper towels to people in San Juan during a photo op -- and his emergency management team in the months following the hurricane are stuff of bureaucratic legend: the botched $156 million contract that was supposed to deliver 30 million meals that only delivered 50,000,  and the $300 million contract with tiny Whitefish Energy which was billing $319 per hour for power restoration work by linemen who were getting paid $63 per hour.

You can still help ease the burden for our fellow Americans: Save The Children provides relief to the most vulnerable and hardest hit. The Puerto Rico Community Recovery Fund is another organization actively working to support recovery efforts. Rump has long forgotten our Borinqueño family in their time of need. We must not.

Tonight's Forecast: Stormy Weather!

Tonight's grab- the- popcorn, must- see TV is on CBS' "60 Minutes":

60 Minutes' interview with Stormy Daniels will be broadcast Sunday. The adult-film star and director describes the affair she says she had with Donald Trump in her first television interview about the alleged relationship.https://t.co/p3w8S7SAjm pic.twitter.com/YosFy4EKLL

— 60 Minutes (@60Minutes) March 21, 2018

Stormy's lawyer teases us/ warns orange shitgibbon Donald "Rump" Trump that he has the receipts:

If “a picture is worth a thousand words,” how many words is this worth?????#60minutes #pleasedenyit #basta pic.twitter.com/eCkU0JBZaR

— Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) March 23, 2018

Note: (a) not all of our evidence will be mentioned/displayed tonight – that would be foolish; (b) we are not sure what CBS will include but we know a lot from the full interview will have to be cut bc of the time allowed; (c) tonight is not the end – it’s the beginning. #basta

— Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) March 25, 2018

If you have the interest and/or fortitude, Vox has the definitive Stormy storyline here.

You may want to enjoy the show with an Orange 'n' Stormy cocktail (maybe with an extra dash of orange bitters).

You Tube has the definitive Stormy soundtrack here.

Sunday Reflection

Protest is an expression of belief in the possibility of change. Maybe the rest of us lost that belief somewhere along the way. Now these kids are reminding us, but that’s not their job. They should have been able to just be kids. That they weren’t — indeed, that they almost died — speaks to our failures. -- Leonard Pitts, Jr., on the March For Our Lives movement, in "May The Parkland Kids Forgive Us For Failing Them So Miserably."

Vets' Powerful Message On Gun Safety

As a coda for yesterday's March For Our Lives, which drew nearly a million marchers to Washington, DC, alone, Veterans For Gun Reform prepared this public service announcement in support of the march. These ex-military know what they're talking about when they say that weapons like the AR-15 have no place outside of military or police hands.

March For Our Lives Today (UPDATED)

Today's the day.  There are 792 events in the U.S. and around the world.  Wherever you are, there is likely a March For Our Lives event nearby.  For us, blogging will be nil as we join in supporting the D.C. march.  We hope you can support your local event.

Here are some testimonials from survivors of the Parkland, FL, school massacre who are spearheading the marches (via CNN):

"I'm supposed to be recovering ... and I can't do that if these things are still going to be happening."

Using cell phones, six Parkland survivors chronicled their lives in the weeks after the shooting. Their stories tonight, 9p ET on CNN #ParklandDiaries https://t.co/FHVLh5RY5K pic.twitter.com/7NBh50lY3Z

— CNN (@CNN) March 23, 2018

UPDATE:  We have some first- hand observations of marches around the country in the comments. The D.C. march was immense, but beyond the scope, you had the sense that this was the beginning of a movement that was not going to stop until we got meaningful change in our gun laws.  Speaker after speaker alluded to this and to the fact that this impressive, energized generation would be going to the ballot box again and again until the coin- operated (Republican) politicians were "retired."

A few favorite sign messages:

"We Should Name Schools Uterus So Republicans Would Start Caring About Them"

"Kids Can't Have Bare Arms In School But Kids Can Bear Arms"

"None Of This Matters If You Don't Vote"

... and so many variations on the theme of "F*ck the NRA" that they would fill up several pages.

Here are scenes from events around the country and the world. Here, too. Here three.

As far as drawing a sharp distinction between the two parties, let these two tweets speak for themselves:

Michelle and I are so inspired by all the young people who made today’s marches happen. Keep at it. You’re leading us forward. Nothing can stand in the way of millions of voices calling for change.

— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) March 24, 2018

Today many are peacefully exercising their #1A right to march for gun ban. Many support gun ban. But many others see it as infringement of #2A that won’t prevent shootings. Protest is good way of making a point,but making a change will require both sides finding common ground

— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) March 24, 2018

(Note: No, NRA coin- operated Glug Glug Rubio, they weren't calling for a "gun ban" you lying weasel. But that's what the NRA tells you to say, so...)

More reactions showing the difference between the parties here.

Our Daily Intelligence Briefing Message To Trump

DO NOT FIRE HIM!

Quote Of The Day

Primo snark:

"... I’d say the decision of the nation’s political media that Hillary Clinton’s compliance with email server management best practices was the most important issue facing the country has held up even better than Maureen Dowd’s columns about Trump’s opposition to militarism."  -- Scott Lemieux on Cadet Bone Spurs' appalling "Fox and Friends Presidency."

Today's Cartoons

(click on images to enlarge)


(Lalo Alcaraz, via gocomics.com)


(Jim Morin, Miami Herald)


(Darrin Bell, Washington Post Writers Group)


(Stuart Carlson, via gocomics.com)


(Steve Breen, San Diego Union-Tribune)

Tweet Of The Day -- Only The Best

John Bolton once suggested Russian hack of DNC may have been a false flag operation by Obama Admin. He joins Joe diGenova, another Fox contributor, who thinks the FBI conspired to frame the President. Glad to see @POTUS surrounding himself with rational thinkers. Heaven help us.

— Adam Schiff (@AdamSchiffCA) March 22, 2018

Oh, did we mention Bolton's nuts?

And a self- consuming shitstorm?