Maryland and D.C. Ready To Subpoena Trump

While public attention has focused on Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation and information coming from former Trump fixer Michael Cohen, another court case below the radar may also damage con man and "Individual 1" Donald "Rump" Trump. The State of Maryland and the District of Columbia are moving forward with their lawsuits concerning Rump's use of his Washington, DC hotel as a cash cow, in apparent violation of the emoluments clause in the Constitution.

The attorneys general for Maryland and D.C. are about to issue discovery subpoenas to gather records and information regarding Rump's Washington hotel, which is a magnet for foreign dignitaries and plutocrats seeking to win Rump's favor by spending at his establishment. According to AP:

"District of Columbia Attorney General Karl A. Racine said in a statement that the subpoenas would go out to third-party organizations and federal agencies “to gather the necessary evidence to prove that President Trump is violating the Constitution’s emoluments clauses — our nation’s original anti-corruption laws.”

Trump has been fighting multiple lawsuits that argue foreign representatives’ spending money at the Trump International Hotel are violations of the Constitution’s emoluments clause, which bans federal officials from accepting benefits from foreign or state governments without congressional approval."

Rump's lawyers in the Justice Department are seeking to block the discovery and derail the case against the Oval Office con man:

“We’ve got the discovery ready to go,” said Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh. “Their objective at this point is just to keep the doors shut, they don’t want any of this information out in public and they don’t want our case to move forward. So they’re going to be be obstructing as much as they can.”

That certainly sounds familiar: cover up and obstruct to protect Rump's lawless behavior.

BONUS:  Here's the judge's ruling allowing the discovery to go forward --

Judge approves discovery process for DC/MD emoluments lawsuit against President Trump. AGs Racine and Frosh will soon send subpoenas to the president's business. https://t.co/dhi5ng4nmk pic.twitter.com/kj1QYKWHyt

— Paul Blumenthal (@PaulBlu) December 3, 2018

Witness Tampering In Plain View

Making Robert Mueller's job all the more easy, incompetent mob boss Donald "Rump" Trump is witness tampering with one of his capos:

“I will never testify against Trump.” This statement was recently made by Roger Stone, essentially stating that he will not be forced by a rogue and out of control prosecutor to make up lies and stories about “President Trump.” Nice to know that some people still have “guts!”

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 3, 2018

We have some legal opinions about that tweet:

File under “18 U.S.C. §§ 1503, 1512” https://t.co/e4ZGVn1kJi

— George Conway (@gtconway3d) December 3, 2018

George is right. This is genuinely looking like witness tampering. DOJ (at least with a nonfake AG) prosecutes cases like these all the time.  The fact it's done out in the open is no defense. Trump is genuinely melting down, and no good lawyer can represent him under these circs https://t.co/zqFUoQvWTf

— Neal Katyal (@neal_katyal) December 3, 2018

Here's the link to 18 U.S. Code § 1503 and to 18 U.S. Code § 1512 in case you want to quote the law to your crazy red hat relative.

Tweets Of The Day

Dolt 45, ladies and gentlemen:

#G20 #25thAmendmentNow pic.twitter.com/fCnlTBdNkL

— ᑕᕼᑌᑎK (@chunkled) December 2, 2018

True:  Trump's afraid of sharks and Mexicans.  Also, Trump was heard to say "Get me out of here" as he bumbled off stage.

Meanwhile, let's do "the Mueller dance."

Hi.
I love you.

(sound up) pic.twitter.com/4RXlIpLIec

— ᑕᕼᑌᑎK (@chunkled) November 29, 2018

(Here's the original video by Spike Jonze, starring Christopher Walken.)

Today's Tomorrow Cartoon

(click to enlarge)

Pathological liar and treasonous mob boss Donald "Rump" Trump's story will shift to match what he thinks he needs to do, but Mueller's indictments don't lie, and they're coming ever closer.

Monday Reading

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

The Special Counsel's investigation seems to be uncovering a lot of, um, liars around pathological liar Donald "Rump" Trump.  Who knew?

One lied about his knowledge of Russian-hacked emails [George Papadopoulos], another about a Russian real estate deal [Michael Cohen], a third about dialogue over sanctions with a Russian ambassador [Michael Flynn]. 

A pattern of deception by advisers to President Donald Trump, aimed at covering up Russia-related contacts during the 2016 campaign and transition period, has unraveled bit by bit in criminal cases brought by special counsel Robert Mueller. 

The lies to the FBI and to Congress, including by Trump’s former fixer and his national security adviser, have raised new questions about Trump’s connections to Russia, revealed key details about the special counsel’s findings and painted a portrait of aides eager to protect the president and the administration by concealing communications they presumably recognized as problematic.

More and more they're resembling an incompetent mob family.

There's almost no better example of the complete submission of the Republican/ Stupid Party to Rump than in its global climate change denialism:

Sen.-elect Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee said falsely in the lead-up to her campaign that the Earth has started to cool, and argued inaccurately that scientists have not reached a consensus on climate change. 

In Florida, which has been pummeled by hurricanes, Sen.-elect Rick Scott has acknowledged rising and warmer seas could be harmful to his state but won’t attribute it to human activity. 

And Sen. John Neely Kennedy, who is expected to announce Monday whether he will run for Louisiana governor, told reporters last week that while the Earth may be getting hotter, “I’ve seen many persuasive arguments that it’s just a continuation of the warming up from the Little Ice Age.”

Voters in Tennessee and Florida had a chance in November to cauterize themselves from denialist Republicans, but they chose to, literally, reap the whirlwind.  Voters still have a chance to retire that homespun goober in Louisiana. Of course, their ignorant hero was alone at the G20 Summit this weekend in failing to support the Paris Climate Accords in a joint communique signed by 19 other nations.  But, as Steve M. points out, denialism long preceded the arrival of Rump. Through their malicious inaction today, this Rump- led mob of sociopaths and morons will be responsible for the misery and deaths of millions of people around the world over the coming decades.

Don't expect any self- examination from this Trump cult, either:

With a brutal finality, the extent of the Republicans’ collapse in the House came into focus last week as more races slipped away from them and their losses neared 40 seats. 

Yet nearly a month after the election, there has been little self-examination among Republicans about why a midterm that had seemed at least competitive became a rout.

They've forever hitched their wagon to Trump. May their demise be rapid and complete.

For the civilized world that isn't science- phobic, some interesting news:

The universe shines with the light of some billion trillion stars. A team of astrophysicists recently used a satellite to sum up all these stars' light, measured in particles called photons. Let there be numbers: By their estimate, over the history of the universe, stars have emitted 4 times 10-to-the-84th-power photons into the visible universe (that’s a 4 followed by 84 zeros). 

But their work was more than counting sunbeams. The technique allowed astrophysicists to construct a history of star formation: Star births peaked about 3 billion years after the big bang, as members of the international Fermi-LAT Collaboration reported Thursday in the journal Science. This spurt has slowed dramatically in the 10-plus billion years since.

"4 followed by 84 zeros."

Finally, we recommend you taking time to check out Infidel 753's link round- up to various items of interest he discovered searching the internet.  We always get a new appreciation about something from a visit (like, for instance, the dystopian capitalism of self- checkouts).

Across The Universe, Cont. -- Tangled Web

(click on image to enlarge)



From NASA/ESA, November 26, 2018:  This dark, tangled web is an object named SNR 0454-67.2. It formed in a very violent fashion — it is a supernova remnant, created after a massive star ended its life in a cataclysmic explosion and threw its constituent material out into surrounding space. This created the messy formation we see in this NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image, with threads of red snaking amidst dark, turbulent clouds.

SNR 0454-67.2 is situated in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a dwarf spiral galaxy that lies close to the Milky Way. The remnant is likely the result of a Type Ia supernova explosion; this category of supernovae is formed from the death of a white dwarf star, which grows and grows by siphoning material from a stellar companion until it reaches a critical mass and then explodes.

As they always form via a specific mechanism — when the white dwarf hits a particular mass — these explosions always have a well-known luminosity, and are thus used as markers (standard candles) for scientists to obtain and measure distances throughout the Universe.

Credit: ESA/Hubble, NASA

Desperate Trump Delays Shut Down

In a move akin to putting a loaded shotgun to your foot and threatening to pull the trigger, lawless liar and crime boss Donald "Rump" Trump (a.k.a. "Individual 1") has been threatening to shut down the Federal government if Congress doesn't give him many billions of dollars to fund the 12th century technology wall (that Mexico was supposed to pay for, remember?). The Government's current funding expires on December 7. He must know that even the lame duck Rethuglican Congress will overrule him, so now he's lying that the death of former President George H.W. Bush has prompted him to delay a shut down for two weeks. He knows that with a Democratic-controlled House starting in January, he'll be the one to be shut down as far as the wall is concerned.

If it were a painless exercise to shut down the Government, we'd quote Br'er Rabbit and say, "please throw me in that briar patch," since Rump and the Rethuglicans would be blamed. Unfortunately, the most vulnerable suffer during shut downs, not the elites. In the past year, the Rethuglicans have learned the hard way that they lose the public opinion battle when they halt Government services, disproving their hoary canard that everybody wants "small gub'mint." 

We can expect Rump to engage in more distractions to feed his base the red meat of fear, xenophobia and racism as the Mueller investigation's noose around him and his criminal cohort tightens. This particular distraction may the least potent yet.

(photo: Rump sums it up in a sentence.)

Today's Cartoons

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(Tom Toles, Washington Post)


(David Fitzsimmons, The Arizona Daily Star)


(John Cole, The Times-Tribune, Scranton, PA)


(Monte Wolverton, via caglecartoons.com)

Israeli Police Want Netanyahu Indicted On Bribery Charges

Israel's mini- Trump, right- wing Prime Minister Bibi "Bomb Bomb" Netanyahu, is following in his pal's crooked footsteps:

Israeli police on Sunday recommended indicting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on bribery charges related to a corruption case involving Israel’s telecom giant, prompting immediate calls for his resignation. 

Police say their investigation has established an evidentiary foundation to charge Netanyahu and his wife Sara with accepting bribes, fraud and breach of trust. The case revolves around suspicions that confidants of Netanyahu promoted regulations worth hundreds of millions of dollars to the Bezeq telecom company in exchange for positive coverage of the prime minister on Bezeq’s subsidiary news website, Walla. 

Police have already recommended indicting Netanyahu on corruption charges in two other cases. One involves accepting gifts from billionaire friends, and the second revolves around alleged offers of advantageous legislation for a newspaper in return for positive coverage. 

The prime minister has denied any wrongdoing, dismissing the accusations as a witch hunt orchestrated by the media.

It used to be "patriotism," but now "witch hunt" is the last refuge of a scoundrel.

Israel deserves much better (and so do we, of course).

(Photo:  Brothers grifters- in- arms.)

Don't Cry For Trump, Argentina!

Saturday Night Live's cold open ("It's just a witch hunt, and we're all witches."):

Tweets Of The Day -- If They Can't Win, They'll Cheat And Steal

Two more examples of why Democrats should never be tempted to play nice with the New Nazi/ Republican Party:

Michigan Republicans have also introduced an anti-democratic proposal to take power away from the newly elected Democratic governor and attorney general before they take office: https://t.co/n8qbEj22GM

— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) December 1, 2018

In Wisconsin, Republicans have put forward a wildly anti-democratic proposal to strip powers from the newly elected Democratic governor and attorney general before they take office, cut early voting, and improve their chances in a state Supreme Court race: https://t.co/Ysz3GLVMoR

— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) December 1, 2018

Today's Cartoons

(click on images to enlarge)


(Nick Anderson, Washington Post Writers Group)


(Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution)


(Matt Wuerker, Politico)


(Rob Rogers, robrogers.com)


(Adam Zyglis, The Buffalo News)

Can Do, Buddy, Can Do!

We've seen the news that corrupt, treasonous con man Donald "Rump" Trump (a.k.a. "Individual 1") had proposed to give Russian thug Vladimir Putin the $50 million penthouse of ill-fated Trump Tower Moscow (a Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violation? Perhaps.). That gave Stephen Colbert all he needed for his monologue last night. Especially hilarious is when Colbert mimics the Michael Cohen - Felix Sater connection in the underworld jargon that was used in the opening number for the '50s musical "Guys and Dolls" (start at the 5:20 mark for context). Big ovation from audience.



"His name is Donald Trump,
He's got a big fat rump,
And he'll win after the e-mail dump,
Can do, can do!"

Letters We Wish We'd Written Dept.

In today's WaPo:

The announcement by General Motors to drop car lines, close plants and lay off workers is more than just a signpost of where the economy is going [“GM closing plants, laying off 15,000,” front page, Nov. 27]. 

GM’s decision is rational thinking in the complex world of auto manufacturing. Shareholders reward profits and those companies that respond to market forces. Investors did not see a mistaken bet. In fact, GM’s stock price rose 4.79 percent on the news. 

More important, GM’s decision to drop car lines is just one more example that public-policy choices really matter for the country’s economic future. President Trump rolled back fuel economy standards. He rolled back climate change initiatives. He now has cheap fossil fuels, including at the pump. In foreign policy, he exited the Iran nuclear deal and is making a deal with the devil in Saudi Arabia to get the Saudis to pump more oil to keep prices low. The bottom line to all of Mr. Trump’s policy choices for the auto industry is a cold, wet blanket on demand for sedans. Fuel efficiency as a purchase motive is greatly reduced.  

The bottom line for the economy is that a lot of people will lose their jobs, capital investment will take a hit, and towns in Ohio and Michigan will lose a lot of tax base. Ohio and Michigan just got exactly what they deserve in voting for Mr. Trump: a transactional president, a short-term thinker, leading with an eye on the rear-view mirror, clueless about the far-reaching consequences of public-policy decisions. 

Daniel Keifer, Abington, Pa.

Also: Trump tariffs. A perfect storm.

Former President George H.W. Bush Dies

Former President George H.W. Bush died last night at the age of 94. He was preceded in death by his wife Barbara earlier this year and by his daughter Robin in 1953.

The key elements of his biography are well- known to most: son of a wealthy Senator, WWII Naval aviator, Yale graduate, oil drilling executive, Congressman from Texas, Ambassador to the U.N., Ambassador to China, CIA Director, Vice President, 41st President and volunteer and goodwill relief efforts post- presidency.  You can read an unvarnished look at his life and career here.  President and Mrs. Obama's statement is here, and Minority Leader (for now) Nancy Pelosi's here.

Many are remembering the letter Bush left in the Oval Office for the man who defeated him, incoming President Bill Clinton, and the grace it displayed.  Here's the text of that letter:

Dear Bill,

When I walked into this office just now I felt the same sense of wonder and respect that I felt four years ago. I know you will feel that, too. 

I wish you great happiness here. I never felt the loneliness some Presidents have described. 

There will be very tough times, made even more difficult by criticism you may not think is fair. I’m not a very good one to give advice; but just don’t let the critics discourage you or push you off course. 

You will be our President when you read this note. I wish you well. I wish your family well. 

Your success now is our country’s success. I am rooting hard for you. 

Good luck— 

George

We'll leave it at that. R.I.P.