Tweets Of The Day -- Supporting "Our" Troops!

The graphics unit of Russian Military Intelligence is cranking out some fine ad material for Tovarich Trump (a.k.a. Cadet Bone Spurs), no doubt free of charge.

Trump “support@our troops” campaign ad uses photo of Russian planes https://t.co/x1GCxTpmOF

— John Harwood (@JohnJHarwood) September 15, 2020

and at least one carrying a Russian Kalashikov rifle

— David Ahrens (@David_K_Ahrens) September 15, 2020

 

Weird how it’s always Russiahttps://t.co/tVKkQ4zPLp

— Erik Halvorsen (@erikhalvorsen18) September 15, 2020

 

When Russian assets show you who they are, believe them.

— SKeveryday (@ChangeOfHabits) September 15, 2020

 

Everyone knows Cadet Bone Spurs supports our troops (except when they're "suckers" and "losers")!

Dems Reject Trump Plan For Troop Withdrawal

In a clear sign of whose interests he favors, we noted recently that Russia's man in Washington and beneficiary of their political attack Donald "Tovarich" Trump is planning to withdraw a significant number of troops from Germany. The move fits a pattern of his: to undermine the NATO alliance, which he erroneously views as a protection racket, probably from his own experience as a corrupt New York real estate con man. The move also pleases his patrons in Moscow, with whom he's almost certainly struck personal financial or business deals that he needs Putin to protect. He speaks with Putin regularly to get guidance on conducting U.S. foreign policy so it won't interfere with Russia's goals.

The chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY) and his Senate counterpart Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee have introduced a bill to prevent Trump from executing his plan to withdraw those troops from Germany. Sen. Menendez posted a statement regarding the bill on Twitter:

The current U.S. troop presence in Germany is in the U.S. national security interest. Full stop. Just introduced legislation with @RepEliotEngel to prohibit funding for Trump’s reckless troop withdrawal.

MORE: https://t.co/pfK1x825UH

— Senator Bob Menendez (@SenatorMenendez) June 18, 2020

Needless to say, Moscow wasn't happy with the idea that their deal with Trump was being threatened:

We urge the #US lawmakers to exercise restraint in their emotions and assessments. We need to maintain a civilized dialogue. @Russia does not attack anyone and has no such intentions. Stop intimidating American🇺🇸 and European citizens with horror stories about "Russian threat". https://t.co/rn1YNJhbVa pic.twitter.com/Wm1APnSxOu

— Russia in USA 🇷🇺 (@RusEmbUSA) June 19, 2020

"Russia does not attack anyone..." has to be one of the biggest howlers of all time. The very reason they're under sanctions and have been kicked from the G-8 is because they attacked others, namely Ukraine. Their irregular forces occupy the eastern part of Ukraine, known as the Donbass.

This isn't high on the radar of political Washington, but it's still important for the House and Senate to block another Trump gift to the Kremlin.

счастливого Рождества! *

As we noted yesterday, Kremlin asset and fraudster Donald "Rump" Trump is now doing Putin's work for him in plain sight with his order for an immediate withdrawal from Syria. Russia's thankful.

The #US🇺🇸 decision to pull its troops from #Syria🇸🇾 creates good prospects for a political solution in that Arab country - #Zakharova

👉https://t.co/HmwlnBz44y pic.twitter.com/g0f5tqcSPm

— Russia in USA 🇷🇺 (@RusEmbUSA) December 19, 2018

Breaking: Russian President Vladimir Putin says he agrees with President Trump on ISIS defeat, Syria withdrawal. At his annual press conference in Moscow, Putin said, “As for defeating ISIS, I do generally agree with the president of the US,” calls withdrawal “correct” decision

— Jim Sciutto (@jimsciutto) December 20, 2018

 

Rump's made Putin (and Iran and Turkey and ISIS) very happy this holiday season. The heroic Kurds, the democratic organizations within Syria...not so much.

*Merry Christmas!

The Sanctions Shuffle

Putin loyalist and asset Donald "Rump" Trump carefully avoids any personal embrace of sanctions placed on the Kremlin and its circle of oligarchs. After all, they were instrumental in the cyber war against the Dems and Hillary Clinton in particular, and he feels a debt to them. In addition, Special Counsel Robert Mueller is asking questions that may produce new evidence that the Putin-connected oligarchs funneled money into comrade Rump's campaign through various illegal methods (the NRA being an obvious one), something that Rump wants to keep a low profile on.

While Rump wants to avoid displeasing his handler in Moscow by making these announcements himself (that would damage his upcoming performance review), his administration is frantic to appear "tough" on Russia with sanctions. But before the media applause builds, the truth is that, as experts are pointing out, "imposing" sanctions isn't the same as "enforcing" sanctions, something that Rump & Co. have worked hard to undermine. The impact of sanctions is greatly diminished when they are delayed, allowing the targets time to shift their assets around out of reach of the U.S.  Telegraphing your moves to Moscow in advance, then failing to quickly enforce the sanctions, gives the oligarchs and companies targeted plenty of time to evade them.

As with everything related to Rump and Russia, caveat emptor. 

BONUS:  Charlie Pierce at Esquire.com has his own take on the delayed sanctions.

Trump Reluctantly Signs Sanctions Bill

Putin suck-up and unindicted co-conspirator Donald "Rump" Trump finally signed the Russia sanctions bill after five days of sitting on it. Realizing a veto would be overwhelmingly rejected by a Congress that passed the bill 98 - 2 in the Senate, and 419 - 3 in the House, Rump signed it, but had to take some parting shots in his signing statement, while praising himself:

"...The bill remains seriously flawed – particularly because it encroaches on the executive branch’s authority to negotiate.  Congress could not even negotiate a healthcare bill after seven years of talking.  By limiting the Executive’s flexibility, this bill makes it harder for the United States to strike good deals for the American people, and will drive China, Russia, and North Korea much closer together.... Yet despite its problems, I am signing this bill for the sake of national unity.  It represents the will of the American people to see Russia take steps to improve relations with the United States.  We hope there will be cooperation between our two countries on major global issues so that these sanctions will no longer be necessary....I built a truly great company worth many billions of dollars.  That is a big part of the reason I was elected.  As President, I can make far better deals with foreign countries than Congress." (emphasis added)

So the bill "encroaches on the executive branch's authority to negotiate," does it? Read that as "I didn't want to anger my handler Vladimir, who helped me get elected." The "deals" he thinks he can make wouldn't be for the benefit of the country, unless he's talking about Russia and his own corrupt businesses that rely on Russian cash. Note the expressed hope that "there will be cooperation between our two countries on major global issues," ignoring the reason these and earlier sanctions were imposed were Moscow's undermining of our elections to elect Rump, and their takeover of Crimea and military interference in Ukraine, global issues in their own right.

Follow The Money: Russian Mafia Edition (UPDATED)

There's a long and informative piece in The New Republic entitled "Trump's Russian Laundromat" that provides details into Putin loyalist and con artist Donald "Rump" Trump's long-standing relationships with dirty money from Russia, money that was obtained in Russia through fraud, corruption and extortion by a Kremlin-connected band of mobsters and oligarchs. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the country's criminal enterprises merged with elements of the Russian intelligence services and military to loot the public treasury and to bring major industries under their control in a vast criminal kleptocracy. Looking for places outside of Russia to launder their money, they looked to real estate in the U.S., and specifically to New York City. There they found a floundering, narcissistic Rump, who was always short on cash and looking for investors, after American banks increasingly turned him away. That began the saga of Russian money and Rump. An excerpt from the piece (which you must read):

"...even without an investigation by Congress or a special prosecutor, there is much we already know about the president’s debt to Russia. A review of the public record reveals a clear and disturbing pattern: Trump owes much of his business success, and by extension his presidency, to a flow of highly suspicious money from Russia. Over the past three decades, at least 13 people with known or alleged links to Russian mobsters or oligarchs have owned, lived in, and even run criminal activities out of Trump Tower and other Trump properties. Many used his apartments and casinos to launder untold millions in dirty money. Some ran a worldwide high-stakes gambling ring out of Trump Tower—in a unit directly below one owned by Trump. Others provided Trump with lucrative branding deals that required no investment on his part. Taken together, the flow of money from Russia provided Trump with a crucial infusion of financing that helped rescue his empire from ruin, burnish his image, and launch his career in television and politics. 'They saved his bacon,' says Kenneth McCallion, a former assistant U.S. attorney in the Reagan administration who investigated ties between organized crime and Trump’s developments in the 1980s." (emphasis added)

There's little doubt that Special Counsel Robert Mueller, with assistance from the U.S. Attorney for the Southern Manhattan district, is fully aware of this history, which would explain Rump's fierce loyalty to the Kremlin. After all, "they saved his bacon."

UPDATE:  As if on cue, the mysterious eighth person sitting in on Junior's collusion meeting with the Russians in June 2016 was a Russian-American who engaged in, shall we say, washing cash.

Checking With The Home Office (UPDATED)

News item: The only event on neo-fascist Putin loyalist Donald "Rump" Trump's schedule today is a meeting with.....Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. We suppose Rump needs to check in with Mother Russia now and then. Maybe Lavrov will suggest a replacement for fired FBI Director Comey. Or maybe Rump wants to know if there's a suitably grandiose dacha waiting for him in case he needs to make a run for it.

UPDATE:  Putin signals approval of Rump's firing of Comey. Really.

UPDATE II:  Here's a picture of Rump today with his Russian handler, Russian Ambassador and spy recruiter Sergey Kislyak, and Lavrov, a session the American press was barred from, btw -- courtesy of the Russian Embassy:

Ambassador Kislyak and President Trump / Посол С.Кисляк и Президент Д.Трамп pic.twitter.com/Ckkx2YL9KX

— Russia in USA 🇷🇺 (@RusEmbUSA) May 10, 2017

#Lavrov - @realDonaldTrump meeting has just started | В Овальном кабинете началась встреча С.Лаврова с Д.Трампом#RussiaUSA #РоссияСША pic.twitter.com/7raFrkWhiC

— MFA Russia 🇷🇺 (@mfa_russia) May 10, 2017

Were the co-conspirators getting their stories straight on former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn's contacts with Kislyak, among other Russians?

Staying Focused (UPDATED)

A "firehose" of distractions and inept attempts at multiple "policy" initiatives have been the hallmark of the first 100 days of the regime of neo- fascist dangerous incompetent Donald "Rump" Trump. When he's not tweeting inane comments about "wire tapping" or judicial reviews of his authoritarian dictums, he's desperately trying to give the impression his regime is achieving its goals when, in fact, it's a befuddled sh*t show.

In that context, E.J. Dionne, Jr., puts his finger on the "greatest single achievement" of Rump's first 100 days:

In the outpouring of commentary on President Trump’s first 100 days in office, his greatest single achievement is almost never mentioned, which is itself a sign of what a major triumph it is: We are not talking much about whether Russia colluded with Trump’s campaign to help elect him. 

... Given the substantive emptiness of Trump’s presidency so far, his greatest achievement is that he is still standing there, making pronouncements as if he means them and moving noisily but without any clear plan from one thing to the next. Every day he can postpone his reckoning with Russia is a victory.

With his one- page Trickle Down Tax "Reform" "plan" that even economists of Rump's party are calling a "magic unicorn" proposal built "on a fairy tale," the temporary revival of an even more draconian "Trumpcare" proposal, and crumbling positions on NAFTA and funding a border wall taking up so much news media oxygen, Rump's reckoning on his Russia ties is being delayed, as Dionne notes. But it's such a profoundly sinister story that -- with the intelligence community engaged (and leaking) and the likes of Sen. McCain promising "more shoes to drop" --  the reckoning will come as long as there is a continuing focus amidst the noise and clutter.

UPDATE:  "Nevertheless She he persisted!"

Newly released documents reveal that the Department of Defense warned former Trump National Security Adviser Michael Flynn against taking money from foreign governments — but nevertheless, he persisted. 

CNN reports that the new documents show Flynn was warned by the Defense Intelligence Agency to not accept cash from foreign governments in 2014 as he entered retirement. Flynn nonetheless took money from both the Russian and Turkish governments for paid speeches and for lobbying work, respectively. 

“These documents raise grave questions about why General Flynn concealed the payments he received from foreign sources after he was warned explicitly by the Pentagon,” said Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD), who released the documents on Thursday. 

 Lock him up! Lock him up!

(Image: via Wonkette)

No Puppet! No Puppet!

Owen Dorell at USA Today has pulled together facts about the many and long- term business relationships between neo- fascist Putin pocket pal Donald "Rump" Trump and very shady Russian and former Soviet republic oligarchs in a must- read article (our emphasis throughout).

The president and his companies have been linked to at least 10 wealthy former Soviet businessmen with alleged ties to criminal organizations or money laundering. 

Among them: 

• A member of the firm that developed the Trump SoHo Hotel in New York is a twice-convicted felon who spent a year in prison for stabbing a man and later scouted for Trump investments in Russia. 

•  An investor in the SoHo project was accused by Belgian authorities in 2011 in a $55 million money-laundering scheme. 

• Three owners of Trump condos in Florida and Manhattan were accused in federal indictments of belonging to a Russian-American organized crime group and working for a major international crime boss based in Russia. 

•  A former mayor from Kazakhstan was accused in a federal lawsuit filed in Los Angeles in 2014 of hiding millions of dollars looted from his city, some of which was spent on three Trump SoHo units. 

•  A Ukrainian owner of two Trump condos in Florida was indicted in a money-laundering scheme involving a former prime minister of Ukraine.

The Trump Organization, through a spokesperson, has said, "The Trump Organization never entered into a single transaction with any of these individuals and the condominium units were all owned and sold by third parties — not Trump.”  Well, that should settle it-- wait what:

Trump's privately held company works through a network of subsidiaries and partnerships that make direct connections hard to trace, particularly since he has refused to release his tax filings. In addition, some of the Trump Organization's investors and buyers operate through shell companies and limited liability corporations that hide the identities of individual owners.

The article points out that Rump has a background in money laundering going waaay back to 2015 and his Taj Mahal Casino, which was fined $10 million for failing to report suspicious transactions =cough= money laundering =cough=.  What's more,

The Trump SoHo project "was largely financed by illegally obtained cash from Russia and Eastern European sources, including money provided by known international financial criminals and organized crime racketeers," former prosecutor [Joe] McCallion wrote on his blog in October. McCallion was an assistant U.S. attorney in New York from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s under presidents Carter and Reagan.

McCallion, who has spent years in the seamy world of Rump business dealings gets to the point that investigators will hopefully someday reach, "What do the Russians have on Trump?":

“The FBI is always concerned if public officials can be blackmailed,” McCallion said. “It’s Russian-laundered money from people who operate under the good graces of President Putin. If these people pull the plug on the Trump Organization, it would go down pretty quickly.”

For a skunk like Rump whose whole image is tied up in his business "success" and wealth, that's the strongest leverage you can have.

(photo: Washed his hair and can't do a thing with it.)

Villain Rep. Devin Nunes Tips Off Trump To Investigation Intercepts

So, this happened in the midst of everything else this afternoon (our emphasis):

Investigators don’t normally brief the people they’re investigating. But on Wednesday afternoon, Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), the Republican who’s leading a congressional investigation into whether President Donald Trump’s team colluded with Russia to interfere in the 2016 election, went to the White House to talk to the president. 

U.S. intelligence agencies had intercepted Trump associates’ communications ― and perhaps those of Trump himself ― in the final three months of the Obama administration, Nunes said he told Trump. 

Nunes, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and a close Trump ally, said the intercepted communications didn’t mention Russia and were therefore unrelated to his investigation. But the subject matter ― the intelligence community’s investigation of Trump and his associates’ connections to foreign powers ― overlapped. And Nunes’ objective appeared political: Deflect attention from Trump and his associates’ ties to Russia, and back up Trump’s claim that he is a victim of “deep state” loyal to former President Barack Obama. 

Nunes’ gambit failed. In attempting to put out the Trump-Russia fire, he made much of it worse: In two press conferences on Wednesday, he confirmed that Trump’s surrogates ― and maybe the president himself ― were subjects of legal surveillance, implied that they may have had suspicious contact with agents from a country other than Russia, and potentially disclosed classified information. 

And by choosing to brief the president, who’s so closely tied to the investigation, before sharing his new information with his Democratic counterpart, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Nunes also raised doubts about his own ability to lead his committee’s probe.
Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said that Nunes “will need to decide if he is the chairman of an independent investigation or if he’s a surrogate for the White House.”

“If a Democrat had done this, Republicans would have been asking for him to be investigated both for disclosing classified information and for obstructing justice,” said Matthew Miller, a Department of Justice spokesman during the Obama administration. “It is so far beyond the pale for the person who is conducting an investigation to both brief the subject of that investigation and potentially jeopardize an ongoing criminal investigation being conducted by the FBI.” 

That would be one of our bumbling villains, Rep. Devin Nunes, formerly a dairy farmer and more recently a member of neo- fascist un-indicted co-conspirator (maybe!) Donald "Rump" Trump's transition team, making a strong case today for (at the very least) his removal from the chair of the House Intelligence Committee and the appointment of a Special Counsel to continue the investigation of the Russia- Trump connection. Whatever doubt of this remained after Nunes and his fellow enabling Republicans on the committee lobbed defensive or distracting questions at FBI Director James Comey at Monday's hearing should now be now entirely dispelled. He is Rump's man on the committee (among many others) and cannot be trusted in any way, shape or form.

Some selected reactions:

For those still not getting it: Nunes and now White House are manipulating language to make it seem like Trump wiretapping true. It isn't.

— Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) March 22, 2017

Nunes, who wants leakers hunted down and thrown in prison, talked about a lot of classified information today https://t.co/Ih6OYAt3YT

— Matthew Rosenberg (@AllMattNYT) March 22, 2017

NUNES: Hey, don't look at Paul Manafort working to undermine democracy on behalf of Putin! Look over here! Yoo-hoo!

— Jake Vig (@Jake_Vig) March 22, 2017

7. It shows how much pressure Team Trump is feeling, including #DevinNunes himself, who was on the Trump transition team. SCREWS TIGHTEN.

— Peter Daou (@peterdaou) March 22, 2017

Hot Take: Devin Nunes may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer

— Dan Pfeiffer (@danpfeiffer) March 22, 2017

Perhaps feeling liberated by Nunes' actions, Intelligence Committee Ranking Minority Member Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) upped the ante on the villain:

Schiff on collusion btw Trump associates and Russians: "I can't go into the particulars, but there is more than circumstantial evidence now" pic.twitter.com/JvPv74ROiM

— David Mack (@davidmackau) March 22, 2017

Lock him up! Lock him up!

BONUS:  Steve Benen has a good read about Nunes' bizarre actions.

Tillerson To Visit Mother Russia

The Russian Federation has been described as a gas station masquerading as a nation. Oil and gas reserves give the Kremlin most of its clout in the world, despite sagging oil prices on the world market. Before he was Secretary of State, plutocrat and Russophile Rex "Rexxon" Tillerson was the head of Exxon Mobil, and he was up to his double chin in negotiations with Russia's state-owned oil company Rosneft for a potential $500 billion deal to drill in the Russian Arctic's Kara Sea. Then, in 2014, Russia invaded Ukraine's Crimea province, and the U.S. organized economic sanctions against the Russian Federation, which blocked Exxon from further exploration in the Kara Sea. Exxon is estimated to have lost $1 billion as a result of the sanctions.

Fast forward to 2017. Tillerson is now Secretary of State, presiding over a key Department that's facing deep cuts in its budget, and having few senior positions filled to allow it to operate effectively. The sanctions against Russia remain imposed, and the campaign of Putin puppet Donald "Rump" Trump is under investigation by the FBI for collusion with Russia. Last Monday's hearings with FBI Director James Comey and NSA Director Adm. Mike Rogers brought a feeling of urgency for Rump's agenda, to move it forward before the investigations into his dealings with Russia threaten to spin out of control. Part of that agenda appears to be reassuring the Kremlin that Rump will remain a friend to their petrostate, despite the investigations and growing suspicion, and that he will work on lifting those sanctions. Tillerson is the man to deliver that message, as he undoubtedly will when he visits Moscow next month, after blowing off a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels to discuss alliance business. Although his job title reads "Secretary of State," you can be assured after 41 years at Exxon, he sees the world (and Russia) through oil goggles.

Rump's personal entanglement with Russian oligarchs and bankers remains shrouded, at least as long as his tax returns remain undisclosed. In 2008, his son bragged that “Russians make up a pretty disproportionate cross-section of a lot of our assets.” Are the entanglements significant loans from Russian oligarchs to prop up his business? Are they his investments in oil companies that expect to do major business with Rosneft after a lifting of the sanctions? A combination of that, and more? The FBI investigation may turn over some unanticipated rocks hiding some fatal facts for Rump, so time is of the essence for him, Tillerson and their Russian co-conspirators to get Russian deals done while they still can.

Quote Of The Day - What's That Smell?

“There’s a smell of treason in the air. Imagine if J. Edgar Hoover or any other FBI director would have testified against a sitting president? It would have been a mind-boggling event.” -- Presidential historian Douglas Brinkley in the Washington Post, March 20, after the House Intelligence Committee hearing on Russia's interference on their asset Donald "Rump" Trump's behalf in the 2016 election.

The Biggest Takeaways From Today's House Hearing On Russian Interference In The Election

Here, to us, are the biggest stories from today's House Intelligence Committee hearing on Russian interference on behalf of neo- fascist Putin pocket charm Donald "Rump" Trump in the recent elections. (Nancy LeTourneau has been liveblogging the hearing, and we've relied on her reporting here; check out her insights.)

First, FBI Director and election ratf*cker James Comey confirming right out of the box that there is an active investigation of links between Rump's campaign and the Russian government:

As you know, our practice is not to confirm the existence of ongoing investigations. Especially, those investigations that involve classified matters. But, in unusual circumstances, where it is in the public interest, it may be appropriate to do so, as Justice Department policies recognize. This is one of those circumstances. I have been authorized by the Department of Justice to confirm that the FBI, as part of our counter-intelligence mission, is investigating the Russian government’s efforts to interfere in the 2016 presidential election. And that includes investigating the nature of any links between individuals associated with the Trump campaign and the Russian government and whether there was any coordination between the campaign and Russia’s efforts.

Furthermore, when Rump shill Rep. Michael Turner (Weasel- OH) attempted to slough off the grounds for initiating an investigation by suggesting any little ol' thing could trigger one, amirite?, Comey responded it would have to be "A credible allegation of wrongdoing." Boom.

Second, Comey asserted that the FBI and Justice Department investigated and have no evidence that President Obama ordered a wiretap of Rump, and that Obama couldn't have ordered one anyway. Boom.

Third, efforts by the Rump White (Supremacist) House to change the narrative are being refuted almost in real time (thanks, Twitter!).

The NSA and FBI tell Congress that Russia did not influence electoral process. pic.twitter.com/d9HqkxYBt5

— President Trump (@POTUS) March 20, 2017

The FBI Director was just asked under oath if this tweet was accurate. He said this tweet is not what he said. https://t.co/RWijNNe90p

— Liam Stack (@liamstack) March 20, 2017

Fourth, as we point out below, not unexpectedly party- before- country Republicans are desperately trying to change the narrative from the leaked information to Rump's focus: "Find the leakers!"  The same pattern occurred during the Watergate hearings, when diehard Nixon supporters in Congress threw every roadblock they could in the way of the investigation -- until those infamous tapes painted them into a corner and forced them to stand down. They're different faces now, but the same empty souls.

Why would anyone with nothing to hide react in the manner Rump is reacting?  Why would elected officials sworn to uphold the Constitution actively engage in dissembling and diversion in order to provide cover for a thing as unfit and unworthy as Rump?  Rhetorical questions, folks!

BONUS:  Be sure to read the statement of Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), which laid out in detail what we already know about the Russia-Trump connection (embedded in the linked article).

Giant Toddler Getting Very Nervous About Adults Finding Out What's In His Closet (UPDATED)

Today, FBI Director and election ratf*cker James Comey will be testifying in an open session to the House Intelligence Committee to address issues related to Russia's involvement in the 2016 election. Comey is expected to also discuss the diversionary charge made by neo- fascist Giant Toddler (h/t Quinn Cummings) Donald "Rump" Trump that President Obama "wiretapped" Trump Tower in New York before and after the election. (See Update below.)

As a prelude to potential bombshells going off, Rump is conducting himself (as always) like a toddler who's desperately afraid his parents will find the dump he made in his closet. Here are his latest attempts to distract and deceive (at 6:35 in this morning!):

James Clapper and others stated that there is no evidence Potus colluded with Russia. This story is FAKE NEWS and everyone knows it!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 20, 2017

The Democrats made up and pushed the Russian story as an excuse for running a terrible campaign. Big advantage in Electoral College & lost!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 20, 2017

The real story that Congress, the FBI and all others should be looking into is the leaking of Classified information. Must find leaker now!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 20, 2017

Being the stupid, obsessive thing that he is, Rump can't help but provide "tells" that make it risibly obvious that he is desperately trying to change the narrative. Which of course makes everyone wonder even more, "What's he hiding?"

We may not be at the beginning of the end of this story, but it's looking like we're approaching the end of the beginning.

UPDATE : Comey has confirmed the FBI is investigating possible connections between Rump associates and Russian government officials.  Also, there's no FBI information on Rump's "wiretapping" diversion. Surprise! More on this later.

UPDATE II:  Where do you think Republicans like House "Intelligence" Committee Chair villain Rep. Devin Nunes (Weasel- CA) get this:

Good Lord. Nunes just asked Comey if FBI would investigate Clinton campaign or foundation for ties with Russia. 

Why from their orange shitgibbon master!

What about all of the contact with the Clinton campaign and the Russians? Also, is it true that the DNC would not let the FBI in to look?

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 20, 2017

Putin's Man In Washington (UPDATED)

(click on image to enlarge)

Nick Anderson, Houston Chronicle

Last Sunday's anti-American statement by unstable demagogue and Putin's man Donald "Rump" Trump defending Vladimir "Vlad the Invader" Putin's assassination of journalists and political opponents (saying it was comparable to what America does) shocked observers and generated outrage across the political spectrum. Once again, it reinforced the suspicion that Rump's being controlled by Russia in some fashion, whether it's a personal / sexual kompromat ("tinkle tinkle little czar") by Russian intelligence services, Russian banks propping up Rump's businesses, or both and more. It's clear that his longstanding refusal to utter one word against Russia or its autocratic (and murderous) leader signals that there's something not normal here, as with his refusal to release his tax returns that might provide evidence of ties to Russia. The FBI is purportedly looking into links between Russian officials and Rump's campaign, but that's utterly inadequate and, given the FBI's partisanship, lacking credibility. We're talking about Rump himself, not the known connections of Russia with former campaign manager Paul Manafort or senior advisor Carter Page or Secretary of State and Putin pal Rex Tillerson and the rest.  This situation represents an increasingly grave threat to our national security, wherein a President of the U.S. shows blind fealty to a foreign adversary and conceals the reasons for it.

UPDATE: Pathological liar Rump has claimed that he doesn't know Putin and has no relationship with him. Who are you going to believe, Rump or Rump?

Full, uninterrupted interview from 2013 where Trump details his relationship with Vladimir Putin. View in light of recent revelations. pic.twitter.com/W1eZT6SOQU

— Shaun King (@ShaunKing) January 11, 2017

Russia, Trump and Treason

Not surprisingly, neo-fascist demagogue and "useful idiot" Donald "Rump" Trump has been disparaging the U.S. intelligence community's common conclusion that Russia purposefully hacked our e-mail and data systems and otherwise meddled in the 2016 elections for the purpose of electing him. He's opposed to any investigations into the matter, and is trying to rewrite history about when he knew about the Russian cyberattacks.

In an opinion piece in this morning's Boston Globe, John Shattuck, a former Assistant Secretary of State, explores four areas that would explain Rump's adamant refusal to support an investigation into a hostile foreign power's attack on our democracy:

"First, he may be trying to shore up his political standing before the Electoral College vote on Monday. Second, he may be attempting to undermine the credibility of US intelligence agencies in advance of his taking office so that he can intimidate them and have a freer hand in reshaping the intelligence product to suit his objectives. Third, he may be testing his ability to go over the heads of intelligence professionals and congressional critics and persuade the American public to follow his version of the truth about national security threats. And finally, he may be seeking to cover up evidence of involvement or prior knowledge by members of his campaign team or himself in the Russian cyberattack. In each case the president-elect is inviting an interpretation that his behavior is treasonous." (emphasis added)

Rump is known to have significant amounts of Russian money invested in his organization, and Russian banks and oligarchs don't make a move without the approval of their autocrat Vladimir Putin. Refusing to release his tax returns, he invites further doubts as to his financial dealings with the Russian government, and with corrupt individuals within the Russian oligarchy (not to mention other unfriendly countries).

In the past few weeks, Rump has shown that he intends to use his newfound political power to advance his business interests, even if they are in direct conflict with U.S. interests. As we get closer to the inauguration, those "interpretations" of his behavior may get wider acceptance. After he takes the oath of office, without a complete reversal by him, it would be hard to view his behavior as anything but treasonous.

A Former CIA Official On Trump And Russia: "A Shockingly Easy Intelligence Target"

Former CIA officer and interrogator Glenn Carle speaks out on neo- fascist useful idiot and fat intelligence target Donald "Rump" Trump and his Russian connection:

“There is not just smoke here. There is a blazing 10-alarm fire, the sirens are wailing, the Russians provided the lighter fluid, and Trump is standing half-burnt and holding a match.  

“The facts hurt, Trump won’t like the truth, and he will without question seek to destroy those individuals or organizations that say or do anything that he thinks harm his precious grandiosity.” [snip] 

“Look, in my professional assessment as an intelligence officer, Trump has a reflexive, defensive, monumentally narcissistic personality, for whom the facts and national interest are irrelevant, and the only thing that counts is whatever gives personal advantage and directs attention to himself. 

“He is about the juiciest intelligence target an intelligence office could imagine. He groans with vulnerabilities. He will only work with individuals or entities that agree with him and build him up, and he is a shockingly easy intelligence ‘target’ to manipulate.”

Meanwhile, craven party- before-  country Republicans [=cough= Priebus =cough= McConnell =cough=] scramble to provide cover for the fat intelligence target.

We keep coming back to this because, in all our decades of political observation, we believe this is the most dangerous set of factors we have ever faced as a nation:  a comprehensively unfit president- elect with ties (debts? obligations?) to a hostile, autocratic government that is actively scheming to undermine 70 years of relative prosperity and peace in the West; surrounded by a Cabinet and advisors of hacks, crackpots and plutocratic plunderers. So, while it appears there may be a "bipartisan" Congressional investigation (as well as a review ordered by President Obama due before he leaves office), never underestimate the willingness and ability of the likes of party- before- country Republicans to undermine the inquiries just as they've been adept at undermining democracy in America for decades. It's in their D.N.A.

BONUS:  E.J. Dionne, Jr., echoes the fear and foreboding.

BONUS II:  Don't feel helpless!  Mock Paper Scissors provides an action template.

BONUS III:  Steve Benen gives us a short chronology of the Trump- Putin bromance.

And So Begins Russia's Advance

Repeated warnings from our intelligence community and allies that Russian autocrat and former KGB colonel Vladimir "Vlad the Invader" Putin was cultivating useful idiot and narcissist Donald "Rump" Trump as an "asset" were brushed off by our sage Beltway media savants, the FBI, and spineless and cynical Rethuglican politicians. Numerous times, Rump himself had praised Putin and questioned the usefulness of NATO, and had dismissed hard evidence that Putin's government -- in league with the nihilistic Wikileaks -- was involved in trying to influence the election in Rump's favor through hacked documents.

Russia's been emboldened by Rump's improbable election (but not by a popular vote win), so it was not a total surprise that Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov suggested to their useful idiot Rump that a "confidence-building" move would be for him to slow or stop NATO expansion and to withdraw NATO forces from the proximity of Russia's borders. Peskov is referring to NATO troops protecting the Baltic States of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania (all former Soviet republics) and Poland, and a potential acceptance of Ukraine into the NATO fold. Calling NATO "an instrument of confrontation," Peskov susggested that weakening NATO would lead to a "detente" in Europe, no doubt to Russia's advantage as it seeks to bring former client states and Soviet republics back into its orbit.

Rump would be well to consider the statement that Putin made a few years ago. He called the collapse of the Soviet Union the 20th century's "greatest political catastrophe."  This former Soviet intelligence officer would like nothing better that to leave as his legacy the reconstitution of that entity, albeit as a kleptocracy. He may have an ally in Rump in his mission.

(photo: A mural in Lithuania. Petras Malukas, AFP/Getty Images)

Trump And The Russians, Cont.

Adding to what we already know, there are two alarming assessments this morning of the relationship between neo- fascist authoritarian Donald "Rump" Trump, his campaign, and the Russian government.  We're giving you brief snippets but, as always, we strongly urge you to read the entire pieces.

The invaluable Kurt Eichenwald (who's one of the few journalists keeping his eye on the existential danger represented by Rump) has a long read in Newsweek about how the Kremlin's view of Rump as a tool for disrupting American institutions and democracy has altered somewhat over time:

Trump’s behavior, however, has at times concerned the Russians, leading them to revise their hacking and disinformation strategy. For example, when Trump launched into an inexplicable attack on the parents of a Muslim-American soldier who died in combat, the Kremlin assumed the Republican nominee was showing himself psychologically unfit to be president and would be forced by his party to withdraw from the race. As a result, Moscow put its hacking campaign temporarily on hold, ending the distribution of documents until Trump stabilized, both personally and in the polls, according to reports provided to Western intelligence.  (our emphasis)

Eichenwald details how Russian intelligence operations have successfully penetrated government and non- government organizations connected with the Democratic Party, and the motivations behind that disruptive behavior.  He also notes that Russian intelligence has monitored Rump during visits to Russia and has a "compromising material" dossier on him (a similar dossier on Hillary Clinton is thought to contain "recordings of conversations and intercepted phone calls ... When she was secretary of state, however, Clinton knew her conversations in Moscow might be recorded, so the dossier appears to have been used mainly for intelligence rather than to embarrass her with allies...").

Rump's pattern of behavior in excusing or denying Russian attempts to influence the election (as well as unknowns such as financial ties to Russia and what's in that dossier that Russians may be holding over his head) have alarmed our Western allies to an unprecedented degree:

Officials in Western Europe say they are dismayed that they now feel compelled to gather intelligence on a man who could be the next president of the United States, but believe they have no choice. Moscow is seen as a direct threat to their interests—both in its aggressive efforts to reshape global alliances and for its power to damage Western Europe, which obtains almost 40 percent of its natural gas from Russia. Should the United States, the last remaining superpower, tilt its policies away from NATO to the benefit of Russia, the alliance between America and Western Europe could be transformed in unprecedented ways. And so, for perhaps the first time since World War II, countries in Western Europe fear that the American election, should Trump win, could trigger events that imperil their national security and do potentially irreparable harm to the alliances that have kept the continent safe for decades.  (our emphasis)

Too "nutty" for the Russians and our Western allies. But not for the Republican Party.  That says it.

Former NSA and CIA director under the Bush administration Michael Hayden also examines the phenomenon of Rump's "willful ignorance" when it comes to intelligence assessments of Russia's destabilizing role in Ukraine, Syria, and our elections:

...[T]he American presidential candidate routinely comes to the defense of his Russian soul mate. In the face of a high-confidence judgment of the U.S. intelligence community that Russia hacked the Democratic National Committee and then weaponized embarrassing emails to sow confusion here, the man who would be president has declared: “Our country has no idea,” “I don’t think anybody knows it was Russia that broke into the DNC. . . . It could also be lots of other people” and “They always blame Russia.”  [snip] 

Rejecting a fact-based intelligence assessment — not because of compelling contrarian data, but because it is inconsistent with a preexisting worldview — that’s the stuff of ideological authoritarianism, not pragmatic democracy. And it is frightening. 

Trump also echoes Putin when it comes to Syria and the Islamic State, or ISIS. Here he follows the Moscow line that we and the Russians have common purpose and that Russia and Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad (and Iran) are “killing ISIS.” 

Hayden later comes to this conclusion:

We have really never seen anything like this. Former acting CIA director Michael Morell says that Putin has cleverly recruited Trump as an unwitting agent of the Russian Federation. 

I’d prefer another term drawn from the arcana of the Soviet era: polezni durak. That’s the useful fool, some naif, manipulated by Moscow, secretly held in contempt, but whose blind support is happily accepted and exploited. 

That’s a pretty harsh term, and Trump supporters will no doubt be offended. But, frankly, it’s the most benign interpretation of all this that I can come up with right now.  (our emphasis)

But the FBI ("Trumpland") tells us there's nothing to see here, move along, move along.  And the corporate media remains entranced by the innuendo of the latest nothingburger email "controversy."

So, it remains for us to see that the existential danger posed by this "useful fool" is halted at the ballot box next Tuesday, despite the best efforts of the amoral media, the rotten- to- the- core Republican Party, and the Russian government.

Trump And The Russians

There's been a lot of news coming out over the past 36 hours on Russian meddling in our election, specifically the relationship between neo- fascist useful idiot Donald "Rump" Trump and Russian interests.  Here's a quick summary of a portion of that news, via excerpts from some outstanding reporting.

-- David Corn in Mother Jones, on a long- term effort by the Russian government to cultivate Rump, based on a report from a veteran Western former spy that was transmitted to the FBI:

Mother Jones has reviewed that report and other memos this former spy wrote. The first memo, based on the former intelligence officer's conversations with Russian sources, noted, "Russian regime has been cultivating, supporting and assisting TRUMP for at least 5 years. Aim, endorsed by PUTIN, has been to encourage splits and divisions in western alliance." It maintained that Trump "and his inner circle have accepted a regular flow of intelligence from the Kremlin, including on his Democratic and other political rivals." It claimed that Russian intelligence had "compromised" Trump during his visits to Moscow and could "blackmail him."* It also reported that Russian intelligence had compiled a dossier on Hillary Clinton based on "bugged conversations she had on various visits to Russia and intercepted phone calls."  (our emphasis)

-- Franklin Foer in Slate, on the work of some computer scientists that led to the discovery of an unexplained link:

In late July, one of these scientists—who asked to be referred to as Tea Leaves, a pseudonym that would protect his relationship with the networks and banks that employ him to sift their data—found what looked like malware emanating from Russia. The destination domain had Trump in its name, which of course attracted Tea Leaves’ attention. But his discovery of the data was pure happenstance—a surprising needle in a large haystack of DNS [domain name system] lookups on his screen. “I have an outlier here that connects to Russia in a strange way,” he wrote in his notes. He couldn’t quite figure it out at first. But what he saw was a bank in Moscow that kept irregularly pinging a server registered to the Trump Organization on Fifth Avenue. [snip] 

The researchers quickly dismissed their initial fear that the logs represented a malware attack. The communication wasn’t the work of bots. The irregular pattern of server lookups actually resembled the pattern of human conversation—conversations that began during office hours in New York and continued during office hours in Moscow. It dawned on the researchers that this wasn’t an attack, but a sustained relationship between a server registered to the Trump Organization and two servers registered to an entity called Alfa Bank.  (our emphasis)

-- Norman Eisen and Richard W. Painter in Politico, on Rump's tax returns potentially containing smoking guns on his Russian connections:

If the public saw Trump's taxes, we could check his Russia connections for ourselves. That should start with the troubling discrepancies in how he and his closest associates talk about his Russia ties. Trump has claimed, for example, that “the reason they blame Russia [for hacking into Democratic emails] is they are trying to tarnish me with Russia. I know about Russia, but not about the inner workings. I have no business there and no loans from Russia. I have a great balance sheet.” But that’s very different from the claims that the Trump Organization was making before he decided to run for president. Trump's son said in 2008 that “Russians make up a pretty disproportionate cross section of a lot of our assets” and “we see a lot of money pouring in from Russia.” 

Trump’s tax returns could reconcile the tension between these statements. Even if Trump really does have no loans from Russia and no business in that jurisdiction, what about other financial connections with Russians outside of their land? His statement does not rule out such ties, including shared partnership interests, equity interests, joint ventures or licensing agreements with Russia or Russians—both by Trump and his affiliated companies.

Any or all of these unanswered questions about the Trump - Putin connection were likely what prompted Sen. Harry Reid's statement in his letter to FBI Director Comey that the FBI possessed "explosive information about the close ties and coordination" between our neo- fascist candidate and the Russian government, that the public has a right to know.  But apparently Director Comey's exquisite sense of propriety and transparency only extends to emails on Anthony Weiner's computer, not to disclosing what the FBI is doing (or not) to investigate this unprecedented set of circumstances.

Something else we know:  the FBI has "rogue" agents (concentrated in the New York field office) that are engaging in political hackery, with an assist from Clinton- hating "journalists" at the New York Effing Times.  Both establishments need to get their rat problem under control.

* The internet is abuzz with the notion of a =gurg= Rump Russian sex orgy tape =spew= that might be dropped at any moment. As we've said, "Bombs away!"

(Image:  Along for the ride.)