Tornado Alley (PROG)

[fuagf]

Part 153, some of Russian meddling, and related, material from F6 big ones. These from Saturday, 02/24/18,
headed, Two Reuters Journalists Face 14 Years in Burmese Prison After Exposing Massacre of Rohingya Muslims
https://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=138814960

Thirty-seventh down, into the second half, this pair

Dozens in Trump White House lack permanent security clearance
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams
2/15/18
Trump White House documents obtained by NBC News show that, as of November of 2017, over 130
White House officials did not have permanent security clearances. Our reporter panel reacts.
©2018 NBCNews.com
[originally aired February 14, 2018]
http://www.msnbc.com/brian-williams/watch/dozens-in-trump-white-house-lack-permanent-security-clearance-1162070083833

*

AP: Porn star Stormy Daniels feels free to share Trump story

The 11th Hour with Brian Williams
2/15/18
The manager for porn star Stormy Daniels says her client feels free to share her story about her alleged encounter with Donald
Trump. That after, according to Daniels and her manager, Trump's personal attorney Michael Cohen broke a non-disclosure agreement.
©2018 NBCNews.com
[originally aired February 14, 2018]
http://www.msnbc.com/brian-williams/watch/ap-porn-star-stormy-daniels-feels-free-to-share-trump-story-1162074691564 , https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xOMecK-GCHc [with comments]

To "stashed February 14, 2018:"

Gowdy launches probe into Rob Porter’s White House employment
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/gowdy-launches-probe-rob-porter-s-white-house-employment-n847941

Trump's Vow to Hire the 'Best People' Isn't Panning Out
We're probably already seeing the highest-quality collection of staffers this administration will have to offer.
https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2018-02-14/trump-s-vow-to-hire-the-best-people-isn-t-panning-out

Lawmakers losing confidence in White House after Porter resignation
The House Oversight Committee kicked off an investigation into Trump’s employment of Porter and what White House officials knew about domestic abuse accusations against him.
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/02/14/gowdy-cnn-407923

Barack Obama = Cops Investigating White Powdery Substance Found at Office
http://www.tmz.com/2018/02/13/barack-obama-office-white-powder-investigation/

more: https://www.google.com/search?q=obama+powder

Trump Pick For EPA’s No. 2 Accused Of Abusing Power To ‘Bully’ And ‘Intimidate’ Opponents
As a Senate aide in 2005, Andrew Wheeler went after state air pollution regulators for opposing his boss’s bill.
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/andrew-wheeler-epa_us_5a833277e4b0adbaf3d81984

Stormy Daniels 'free to tell her story' after Trump lawyer statement
An adult film star who has been embroiled in allegations of an affair with President Donald Trump is free to tell her story, her manager has said.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-43055995

Trump’s lawyer just made the Stormy Daniels affair much more interesting
https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/wp/2018/02/14/trumps-lawyer-just-made-the-stormy-daniels-affair-much-more-interesting/

more: https://news.google.com/news/story/dUsmw2uWWsNK3VMvj5JSjXgy5wJCM?ned=us&gl=US&hl=en

Pence says intel community concluded Russia did not affect election
Vice President Pence on Wednesday said the U.S. intelligence community universally concluded that Russia did not have an effect on the outcome of the 2016 presidential election, despite the fact that officials have made no such judgment.
[...]
http://thehill.com/policy/cybersecurity/373855-pence-says-intel-community-concluded-russia-did-not-affect-outcome-of

Ill-Prepared and Underfunded, Election Officials Brace for More Cyberattacks
Federal intelligence officials warned Congress on Tuesday that Russia will again attempt to influence the elections through cyber-warfare. New reports shed light on the inadequacy of state and local security systems.
http://www.governing.com/topics/politics/gov-election-cyberattacks-testimony-russia.html

We need to hack-proof our elections. An old technology can help. - paper ballots
By Michael Chertoff and Grover Norquist
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/we-need-to-hack-proof-our-elections-an-old-technology-can-help/2018/02/14/27a805bc-0c4b-11e8-95a5-c396801049ef_story.html

more: https://news.google.com/news/story/dcqLr5HBg3CM1BMVHWWxaZSMCNUwM?ned=us&gl=US&hl=en

Twitter deleted 200,000 Russian troll tweets. Read them here.
Twitter doesn't make it easy to track Russian propaganda efforts — this database can help
https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/social-media/now-available-more-200-000-deleted-russian-troll-tweets-n844731

Russian Twitter trolls stoked KKK fears at Mizzou during 2015 protests, report says
http://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article200011139.html

more: https://www.google.com/search?q=russia+twitter

President Trump must dump John Kelly in what's become a no-win situation
President Donald Trump has to fire chief of staff John Kelly, even if lower-level staffers are more to blame in the Rob Porter scandal.
Because of the harassment allegations against Trump, he cannot salvage any political capital from this situation.
The result is the Trump team will take a loss here; the only question is how bad a loss it will be.
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/14/trump-has-to-fire-john-kelly-to-save-himself-commentary.html

It’s Time for John Kelly to Go
In Senate testimony yesterday, FBI director Christopher Wray said that the agency had delivered the final results of its background check into now-disgraced aide Rob Porter back in January, months earlier than the White House, and especially Chief of Staff John Kelly, has claimed in the wake of Porter’s firing. Should Kelly’s mishandling of this episode cost him his job?
By Frank Rich
http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2018/02/its-time-for-john-kelly-to-go.html

The Rob Porter scandal engulfing the White House is now under congressional investigation
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2018/02/14/house-oversight-is-investigating-the-white-houses-handling-of-rob-porter-gowdy-says/

more: https://news.google.com/news/story/daKw0amhfcONEeMiwk8ttutBNVoxM?ned=us&gl=US&hl=en

Trump, a Week After Porter Resigned, Says He’s ‘Totally Opposed’ to Spousal Abuse
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/14/us/politics/john-kelly-rob-porter-security-clearances.html

Trump breaks silence, denounces domestic violence
https://www.apnews.com/021dd069cd5c499c89182b2d73d5aa03/Trump-breaks-silence,-denounces-domestic-violence

What is the White House personnel security office?
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/what-white-house-personnel-security-office-n848031

Ex-White House Insider: Rob Porter Was a 'Clear Vulnerability'
A former counterintelligence official explains why you should care about the latest massive White House scandal.
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/wj4jaz/rob-porter-should-not-have-been-hired-white-house-security-clearance

Trump’s scandal pandemic is so bad, even Republicans seem to be squirming
By Jennifer Rubin
https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/right-turn/wp/2018/02/14/trumps-scandal-pandemic-is-so-bad-even-republicans-seem-to-be-squirming/

more: https://news.google.com/news/story/dt-iCi8V18mcCcMaKw0amhfcONEeM?ned=us&gl=US&hl=en

Conservatives Must Save the Republican Party From Itself

( https://youtu.be/udDmXzXQENc )
Feb 14, 2018
Video by The Atlantic
“The Trump Republican party shames itself every day,” argues The Atlantic writer and David Frum. “Some people think we’d be better off if the GOP just went out of business. That’s dangerous advice.”
In this video, which highlights key points from Frum’s article, “An Exit from Trumpocracy,” the self-identifying conservative explains why the Republican party has become “radicalized” and continues to move away from the path of democracy. After all, “it’s not a coincidence that Breitbart.com was founded by Californians,” says Frum.
https://www.theatlantic.com/video/index/553298/frum-conservative-argument/
An Exit From Trumpocracy
The stability of American society depends on conservatives finding a way forward from the Trump dead end.
By David Frum
Jan 18, 2018
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/01/frum-trumpocracy/550685/

Make that one a must watch. It's short. It's poignant. A solid warning from Frum

CNN Exclusive: At least 100 White House officials served with 'interim' security clearances until November
https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/14/politics/security-clearances-white-house/index.html

Scores of top White House officials lack permanent security clearances - more than 130
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/scores-top-white-house-officials-lack-permanent-security-clearances-n848191

More than 100 WH staffers still worked on temporary security clearance a year after election: report
http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/373946-more-than-100-white-house-staffers-had-temporary-security-clearance

White House climate adviser resigns after past pot use blocked security clearance - George David Banks, who was serving as a special assistant to the president for international energy and environmental policy
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2018/02/14/white-house-climate-adviser-resigns-past-pot-use-blocked-security-clearance/

White House official resigns after issue with security clearance: report
A top official on the National Economic Council has reportedly resigned after being told that he did not qualify for a full security clearance.
George David Banks, a special assistant to the president for international energy and environmental policy, resigned Tuesday after the White House Counsel’s office informed him that he would not be granted full security clearance because he admitted to smoking marijuana in 2013, Politico reports.
Banks's departure makes him the third White House official to step down in the past week amid mounting scrutiny over the White House's handling of security clearances.
[...]
http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/373843-white-house-official-resigns-after-learning-he-did-not-qualify-for

White House imposed a ban on new interim security clearances last fall
An email circulated to the Office of Management and Budget in November said existing employees could keep working on interim clearances, but new hires would have to get full clearances.
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/02/13/security-clearances-porter-white-house-407910

more: https://www.google.com/search?q=white+house+security+clearance