Cummings: Either Pence is lying or was 'running a sloppy shop'
By Louis Nelson
05/19/2017 09:46 AM EDT
[VIDEO]
Assertions from Vice President Mike Pence that he did not know of former national security adviser Michael Flynn’s work on behalf of foreign governments until he learned of them in media reports have just two explanations, Rep. Elijah Cummings said Friday. “Either he's not telling the truth, or he was running a sloppy shop.”
Cummings, the ranking member on the House Oversight Committee, noted during a Friday interview on CNN’s “New Day” that he had sent a letter to Pence, then chairman of President Donald Trump’s transition team, last November regarding Flynn’s ties to the Turkish government. Cummings received a receipt from the transition team’s office of legislative affairs, confirming they had received the letter and pledging to “review your letter carefully.”
“Either he's not telling the truth, or he was running a sloppy shop because we have a receipt, Chris, that says they received the letter. Now, I know things get mixed up in the mail. I got that,”the Maryland Democrat told CNN’s Chris Cuomo.
“But when you tell somebody — you send the letter, and it says the person that you are allowing to advise a campaign on security matters, that is getting access to briefings,” is also connected to a foreign government, Cummings continued, “and the same guy who eventually, by the way, became security adviser, the No. 1 guy, getting all of our secrets, somebody should be jumping up and down saying, 'Wait a minute, this is 17 or 20 red lights.' Chris, this is not rocket scientist stuff.” Get the inside story
Despite evidence that he, or at least his office, was alerted to Flynn’s work on behalf of the Turkish government, Pence has stood by his statement on March 9 to Fox News that media reports were the first he had heard of the former national security adviser’s foreign ties. The assertion puts the vice president in the awkward position of either being dishonest or having been kept in the dark about Flynn.
Flynn ended up being fired over a different issue, his misrepresentation to Pence and others about his conversations with Russia’s ambassador to the U.S., after serving just 24 days in office as national security adviser. He has since requested, through his lawyers, immunity from prosecution in exchange for any testimony he might offer.
Cummings said that with his November letter, “What we were trying to do was warn Pence,” but that ultimately, it appeared to him that Trump’s team was insistent on bringing Flynn aboard. ADVERTISING inRead invented by Teads
“My belief is they really wanted this guy to be a part of their operation, period,” Cummings said. “But we're a better country than that. That's why we have a vetting process. And so, we are going to have to look at vetting no matter what.”
President Trump talks James Comey, the Russia investigation, North Korea, and potentially ending the White House daily press conferences in this interview with Judge Jeanine Pirro.
Rep. Elijah Cummings joins Joy Reid on Donald Trump threatening James Comey with possible ‘tapes’ amid other scandalous developments in the FBI Russia probe. Her panel joins to discuss. Duration: 14:18
Rep. Maxine Waters joins Joy Reid calling for the president to stop calling the Russia investigation a witch hunt, allowing it to continue unimpeded, so Congress can determine whether Donald Trump should be impeached. Duration: 7:51
Cleaver: We need an independent commission on Russia
AM Joy 5/14/17
Rep. Emanuel Cleaver joins Joy Reid on how he sees his Republican colleagues in the House blocking the proper measures needed to provide checks and balances on Donald Trump. Her panel joins to discuss. Duration: 11:36
Black voter turnout fell for first time in 20 years
AM Joy 5/14/17
Joy Reid and her panel of experts discuss the many reasons – including new voting restrictions in 14 states and a purging of over one million people from voter rolls – that drove down the critical African-American vote in 2016, particularly in critical swing states. Duration: 15:51
Constitutional law professor Laurence Tribe tells Joy Reid why it is critically important to put the impeachment process in motion now, before it is too late. Duration: 5:24
In the first installment of our new series, ‘Flip this House,’ Joy Reid speaks to Democratic New Jersey Congressional candidate Linda Weber about whether she can win a seat currently held by a Republican, helping shift the majority in the House. Duration: 6:03
Sunday, May 14th 2017[, with an appearance by Mike Cernovich]: Trump to Purge Staff - The mainstream media is reporting on something Infowars broke days ago: President Trump plans a massive shakeup inside the White House intended to dump staff members who are undermining him. Trump insider Roger Stone is in studio to explain what's going on. We also look into how the president is encouraging Americans to NOT worship government.
Dialysis: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)
Published on May 14, 2017 by LastWeekTonight
For-profit dialysis companies often maximize their profits at the expense of their patients. John Oliver explores why a medical clinic is nothing like a Taco Bell.
Full Show - Trump Has Reached The Crossroads: Roger Stone And Mike Cernovich Analysis - 05/15/2017
Published on May 15, 2017 by The Alex Jones Channel
Monday, May 15th 2017: Battle for the Republic - Trump faces a rash of new leaks after eliminating FBI head James Comey, and a major hack attack compromises numerous systems worldwide. Also, Ann Coulter worries Trump supporters may have been duped. On today's show, Trump insider Roger Stone breaks down rumors of an impending shake-up in Trump's cabinet. And journalist Mike Cernovich details why patriots will be happy with what Trump is about to do.
The congressman, who is seeking a special prosecutor, reacts to reports that Trump gave classified information to the Russians in the Oval Office. Duration: 3:58
Dow Chemical, which donated $1M to Donald Trump’s inauguration, was the big winner when the EPA’s new chief rejected the agency's own scientific findings and decided not to ban an insecticide that uses a poisonous chemical. Duration: 2:23
His doctor once said he'd be the healthiest president in history, but the president doesn't exercise, citing the belief that the people - like batteries - have a finite amount of energy. Duration: 1:10
WaPo: Trump shares highly classified info with Russian officials
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/15/17
Greg Jaffe, one of the Washington Post reporters who broke the news of Donald Trump sharing highly classified information with Russian officials while they visited the Oval Office, talks with Rachel Maddow about how the story came together. Duration: 20:22
Trump's abrupt firing of US attorneys remains unexplained
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/15/17
Rachel Maddow reports on the Obama administration's recommendation to the incoming Trump transition not to fire all of the U.S. attorneys at once without replacements - advice that the Trump team agreed to until they suddenly, inexplicably reversed that plan. Duration: 7:54
Senate Intel accessing financial data in Trump-Russia probe: WSJ
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/15/17
Shane Harris, national security senior writer for the Wall Street Journal, about how the Trump-Russia investigation has turned to look at Trump's finances, with new assistance from the Treasury Department's FinCEN unit. Duration: 4:29
Scarce precedent for Trump's reported leak to Russians
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/15/17
David Priess, former CIA analyst and presidential daily intelligence briefer, talks with Rachel Maddow about past examples of presidents sharing classified information with other leaders, but under vastly different circumstances from Trump's reported leaks to Russian officials. Duration: 6:19
Ned Price, former spokesman and senior analyst for the CIA, talks with Rachel Maddow about the vital intelligence sharing relationship that Donald Trump has potentially put in jeopardy with his reported revelation of highly classified information. Duration: 3:58
McMaster called it "false," but the Washington Post stands by its story Trump gave the Russians highly classified intel when they met last week in the Oval Office, which U.S. press was barred from covering. Evelyn Farkas, David Cohen & Eli Stokols join Ari Melber. Duration: 14:31
Donald Trump's White House was thrown into further disarray with a new report that he shared classified information with Russian diplomats. Former Press Secretary Josh Earnest and former Clinton aide Neera Tanden join Ari Melber to discuss the fallout. Duration: 8:49
After firing Comey, Trump reportedly shared secrets with Russians
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/15/17
Just one day after he fired FBI Director James Comey, Trump reportedly shared highly classified information with two Russian officials in the Oval Office. Our expert panel breaks it down. Duration: 14:55
Candidate Trump bashed Clinton's handing of classified info
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/15/17
Over & over again, Trump went after Hillary Clinton during the 2016 for her handling of classified information. So how do we view that in light of reports he allegedly share info with Russians? Duration: 5:45
No answers from Spicer about Trump's tweet on Comey & 'tapes'
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/15/17
MSNBC's Brian Williams discusses the day's other big news - the White House's refusal to answer any questions about Trump's threat to James Comey about the possible existence of 'tapes.' Duration: 5:01
Fmr. Ambassador McFaul: It appears Trump 'wanted to show off'
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/15/17
Joining MSNBC's Brian Williams, former U.S. Ambassador to Russia, Michael McFaul, reacts to the reports that Donald Trump shared highly classified information with Russian officials. Duration: 5:18
Seth takes a closer look at reports that Trump revealed classified information to Russian diplomats and his increasingly authoritarian-like abuses of power.
Full Show - Washington Post Ignores New Explosive Details On Seth Rich Murder - 05/16/2017
Published on May 16, 2017 by The Alex Jones Channel
Tuesday, May 16th 2017[, with Jon Rappoport hosting the fourth hour]: Seth Rich DNC Leaker? - Multiple sources claim former DNC staffer Seth Rich was the source of thousands of emails given to Wikileaks. Also, sources tell Infowars McMaster may be responsible for the latest leak out of Washington. Dr. Edward Group of the Global Healing Center will reveal the hidden, everyday chemicals you may be exposed to. Roger Stone will also join today's broadcast to discuss the latest leaks coming out of The White House.
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Donald Trump will hold his first face-to-face meeting with Turkey's president Tuesday amid accusations that Trump gave Russian officials classified intelligence from a foreign ally. Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are expected to address the Syrian civil war, refugee crisis and the fight against the Islamic State group, including the U.S. decision to arm Syrian Kurdish fighters despite Turkey's vehement objections. But the meeting will take place with a White House still responding to what a senior U.S. official said was disclosure of classified information about an Islamic State terror threat involving laptop computers on aircraft. Trump shared the threat in a meeting with Russia's foreign minister and U.S. ambassador in the Oval Office last week, according to the official, who wasn't authorized to speak publicly on the matter and demanded anonymity. The matter could emerge in Trump's meeting with Erdogan. The U.S. is relying on regional allies including Turkey for intelligence-sharing and military assistance as it crafts a Syria policy, particularly as Iran and Russia work to bolster Syrian President Bashar Assad's government. Trump launched cruise missiles last month at a Syrian air base after accusing Assad of using chemical weapons. But the president hasn't outlined a strategy to quell the six-year civil war or usher Assad out of power, which his administration says will be needed to stabilize the Arab country. Tension was expected already for the Erdogan talks, after the U.S. announced last week that it would arm Kurdish Syrian militants to help them fight IS. Turkey has been pressuring the U.S. to drop support for the militants and doesn't want them spearheading an operation to retake IS' self-declared capital of Raqqa. Turkey believes the Kurds in Syria are linked to a Turkish Kurdish group, known as the PKK, which the U.S., the European Union and Turkey all consider a terrorist organization. The U.S. sees the Syrian Kurds as their best battlefield partner on the ground in northern Syria.
Castro: If NYT report true, likely Congress will move to impeach
All In with Chris Hayes 5/16/17
Rep. Joaquin Castro tells Chris Hayes of the New York Times report on the Comey memo: 'If the evidence bears out that there was obstruction of justice, I think you likely will see Congress go down the road of impeachment.' Duration: 4:11
Exclusive: New subpoena issued in Trump associate investigation
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/16/17
Rachel Maddow breaks exclusive news that a federal subpoena has been issued in the investigation of former Donald Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort. Duration: 2:06
Comey memo: Trump asked for end of Flynn investigation: NYT
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/16/17
Mike Schmidt, reporter for the New York Times, talks with Rachel Maddow about his scoop that James Comey's notes from a meeting with Donald Trump include a description of Trump asking Comey to end the investigation into disgraced Trump NSA Mike Flynn. Duration: 11:36
Comey memo habit raises Trump obstruction questions: NYT
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/16/17
Matthew Miller, former Justice Department spokesperson, talks with Rachel Maddow about former FBI Director James Comey's habit of documenting things with notes and memos, and the legal issues surrounding Donald Trump's reported request that Comey end the investigation into Mike Flynn. Duration: 6:50
Rachel Maddow reports exclusive breaking news that NBC News has learned that federal investigators have subpoenaed records related to a $3.5 million dollar loan taken out by former Donald Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort last year. Duration: 10:02
Congressman Jim Himes, member of the House Intelligence Committee, talks with Rachel Maddow about the significance of the news that Donald Trump may have tried to pressure James Comey into ending the investigation into Mike Flynn. Duration: 9:46
Frank Montoya, former FBI special agent, talks with Rachel Maddow about former FBI Director James Comey's habit of keeping notes on events he experiences, and the importance of note taking to the work of the FBI. Duration: 3:48
Andrea Mitchell, NBC News chief foreign affairs correspondent, talks with Rachel Maddow about how Republicans are processing the news of Donald Trump's assorted violations, and how classified information is supposed to be handled with Russians. Duration: 2:35
Rachel Maddow and Lawrence on extraordinary 7 days
The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell 5/16/17
Lawrence O'Donnell reminds Rachel Maddow it has only been 7 days since Trump fired FBI Director James Comey. We now know Trump tried to stop the investigation into Michael Flynn's ties to Russia—and Rachel shares new reporting about a new subpoena in Trump ... more Duration: 5:15
What Donald Trump doesn't know about the Comey memo
The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell 5/16/17
Lawrence O'Donnell explains the thing everyone working in government knows – but Donald Trump doesn't. That's the real story of the James Comey memo about his conversation with President Trump. Duration: 6:20
Donald Trump fired James Comey after asking him to drop the FBI investigation of Michael Flynn raises the spectre of obstruction of justice. Lawrence O'Donnell discusses with former federal prosecutor Samuel Buell, Tim Weiner, and Joy Reid. Duration: 12:57
Lawmakers on Comey memo: Trump may have obstructed justice
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/16/17
Democrats are demanding answers. Republicans are dodging reporters, while others seem to change their tune on Trump. MSNBC's Brian Williams talks to the reporter who broke the Comey memo story. Duration: 12:48
Watergate prosecutor: Well on our way to Trump impeachment
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/16/17
Jill Wine-Banks, Assistant Watergate Special Prosecutor, and former U.S. prosecutor Paul Butler discuss the revelations that have come to light from the Comey memo. Duration: 8:11
Sen. Manchin on Comey memo: Senators all take the same oath
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/16/17
Stressing that he still needs more facts about Pres. Trump and the Comey memo, Democratic Senator Joe Manchin says he and his colleagues have an obligation to put country first. Duration: 4:32
Rep. Jackie Speier: If there's obstruction, impeachment follows
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/16/17
While stressing she doesn't know if we're there yet, House Intelligence Cmte. Democrat Rep. Jackie Speier won't rule out impeachment proceedings for Pres. Trump. Duration: 3:31
Trump Asked Comey to End Flynn Probe, Gave Russians Intel: A Closer Look
Published on May 16, 2017 by Late Night with Seth Meyers
Seth takes a closer look at the White House playing damage control after bombshell reports about President Trump sharing classified info with Russia and asking the FBI to drop investigations into his former National Security Advisor.
House of Representatives Democratic Caucus leaders hold a press conference regarding President Donald Trump and Russia after a caucus meeting Wednesday.
Full Show - Emergency Broadcast: Deep State Launches Coup Against Trump / Markets Tank - 05/17/2017
Published on May 17, 2017 by Ron Gibson
Wednesday, May 17th 2017[, with appearances by Mike Cernovich (who also hosts the fourth hour) and Jerome Corsi]: Desperate Push Against Trump - The DC elites are trying to overthrow President Trump amid new evidence revealing that the late DNC insider Seth Rich leaked DNC emails to Wikileaks. The anti-Trump forces are rapidly losing the narratives so they are pushing ahead. Geopolitical insider Joel Skousen reveals how this influences current world events.
For GQ's Comedy Issue, Mike Pence In Hot Pants impersonator Glen Pannell shows us a day in the life of the man who hopes to one day succeed Donald Trump.
Breaking: Special Prosecutor Appointed To Russia Probe
Published on May 17, 2017 by The Alex Jones Channel
Robert Mueller, who was at the FBI for a week before the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001, has just been appointed as the Special Prosecutor into the Trump and Russia probe.
Trump Insider Reveals Why A Special Prosecutor Is The Right Move
Published on May 17, 2017 by The Alex Jones Channel
Trump insider and long time friend Roger Stone reveals why he thinks Donald made the right choice to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the tired Trump/Russia collusion connection.
The Democratic senator reacts to the appointment of a special counsel to investigate potential links between President Trump's campaign and Russia. Duration: 4:24
Mueller to oversee Trump-Russia investigation as special counsel
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/17/17
Rachel Maddow reports on the history of the special counsel rule and the appointment today of former FBI Director Robert Mueller to be special counsel for the Trump-Russia investigation. Duration: 14:08
Five key questions about the Trump-Russia special counsel
The Rachel Maddow Show [Posted] 5/18/17 [from this point in the May 17, 2017 show]
Sari Horwitz, Justice Department reporter for The Washington Post, talks with Rachel Maddow about new questions raised by the appointment of Robert Mueller as special counsel to the Trump-Russia investigation. Duration: 9:43
Rep Schiff confident in Mueller as Trump-Russia special counsel
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/17/17
Congressman Adam Schiff, ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, talks with Rachel Maddow about how he feels about Robert Mueller as special counsel in the Trump-Russia investigation and what will happen to the Trump investigations in Congress. Duration: 6:09
Mueller brings legacy of integrity to Trump-Russia investigation
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/17/17
Tim Weiner, author of "Enemies, A History of the FBI," talks with Rachel Maddow about Robert Mueller's reputation and legacy as Director of the FBI, and the integrity he brings to the Trump-Russia investigation as special counsel. Duration: 6:35
Trump-Russia probe well suited to special counsel regulations
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/17/17
Neal Katyal, former U.S. Acting Solicitor General who helped draft the special counsel regulations, talks with Rachel Maddow about the parameters of Robert Mueller's role as special counsel to the Trump-Russia investigation. Duration: 5:35
Trump team knew of Flynn investigation before naming him NSA: NYT
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/17/17
Dan Rather, host of The Big Interview with Dan Rather on AXS TV, talks with Rachel Maddow about the investigations into Donald Trump and his associates and the breaking news that the Trump team knew that Mike Flynn was being investigated and appointed him anyway. Duration: 8:31
Top GOPer caught on tape speculating about Putin paying Trump
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/17/17
Rachel Maddow shares a late breaking Washington Post story about House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy telling colleagues he thinks Russian President Vladimir Putin is paying Donald Trump. Duration: 2:43
NYT: Trump knew Flynn was under investigation, still hired him
The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell 5/17/17
Lawrence O'Donnell and Rachel Maddow react to the New York Times report that the Trump transition team knew Michael Flynn was under investigation on January 4th, but hired him to be National Security Adviser anyway. Duration: 3:06
Secret GOP audio in 2016: 'I think Putin pays' Trump
The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell 5/17/17
The Washington Post obtains secret audio of House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy saying to Paul Ryan and other Republican leaders in private, "I think Putin pays" Donald Trump. Lawrence O'Donnell discusses with Evan Osnos and David Corn. Duration: 7:56
FBI vet: Mueller is 'America first' unlike Trump WH
The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell 5/17/17
Lawrence O'Donnell talks to former assistant Watergate special prosecutor Jill Wine-Banks and former FBI agent Clint Watts, who served under fmr. FBI Dir. Robert Mueller, about what's next for the Russia probe now that Mueller has been appointed special counsel. Duration: 7:27
What will Russia probe Special Counsel mean for Trump?
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/17/17
Deputy Atty. General Rod Rosenstein named revered fmr. FBI Director Robert Mueller to head the FBI investigation into Russia and the Trump campaign. Our expert panel joins MSNBC's Brian Williams. Duration: 11:35
Jeremy Bash: Mueller is now U.S. atty. for the district of Trump
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/17/17
MSNBC's Brian Williams speaks with former CIA Chief of Staff Jeremy Bash about how much leeway newly appointed Special Counsel Robert Mueller will have as the head of the FBI's Russia probe. Duration: 0:41
Does Comey have more to tell us about his talks with Trump?
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/17/17
MSNBC's Brian Williams talks to fmr. Justice Dept. spokesman Matthew Miller and New York Times reporter Charlie Savage about the role James Comey still has to play in the Russia investigation. Duration: 7:40
Calling what we've seen from the Trump presidency so far 'historic,' former Republican Congressman David Jolly says 'there's no question' that Donald Trump is done. Duration: 1:43
Fmr. Dem Congresswoman: Republicans' work is not done
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/17/17
Calling for a special commission, former Democratic Rep. Donna Edwards of Maryland says Republicans and Democrats in Congress still have a responsibility with their Russia investigations. Duration: 2:19
A Special Prosecutor Steps In & Fox News Doesn't Get the Comey Memo: The Daily Show
Published on May 17, 2017 by The Daily Show with Trevor Noah
The Trump-Russia probe gets a special prosecutor, and Fox News downplays a purported memo from James Comey suggesting Donald Trump may have committed obstruction of justice.
Full Show - Comeygate: FBI Director Caught Lying To Congress - 05/18/2017
Published on May 18, 2017 by The Alex Jones Channel
Thursday, May 18th 2017: Former Fox News CEO Roger Ailes has passed away at the age of 77. Dr. Jerome Corsi joins today's broadcast to discuss the deep state coup against Trump and hacking expert John Draper explains the recent global ransomware attack. Also, D.C. insider Doug Hagmann gives his take on Trump's decision to appoint Robert Mueller to oversee the investigation into Russia's influence in the 2016 U.S. election.
The New York Times is reporting that the Trump transition team knew Michael Flynn was under investigation. Mike Pence was the head of the transition team, but denies knowing Flynn was under investigation. Duration: 7:30
Comey recounted inappropriate pressure from Trump: NYT
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/18/17
Michael Schmidt, reporter for The New York Times, talks with Rachel Maddow about his reporting on new details of the Trump administration putting inappropriate pressure on James Comey over investigations into the Trump campaign's ties to Russia. Duration: 10:19
Reported Trump pressure on Comey to deny investigation improper
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/18/17
Matt Miller, former Department of Justice spokesperson, talks with Rachel Maddow about the rules surrounding the kind of pressure Donald Trump is reported to have put on James Comey and the responsibility Comey had to report it. Duration: 4:48
False denials from Mike Pence continue to stack up
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/18/17
Rachel Maddow looks at the many times Mike Pence has denied something about the Donald Trump team only to be proven wrong by further reporting, leaving Pence with a lot of explaining to do. Duration: 18:29
Trump camp had at least 18 contacts with Russians: Reuters
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/18/17
Jonathan Landay, D.C. national security correspondent for Reuters, talks with Rachel Maddow about his new reporting into at least 18 contacts between members of the Trump campaign and Russians. Duration: 6:28
Trump mass firing of attorneys contrary to transition assurances
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/18/17
Rachel Maddow reviews all of the reports and outward indications that the Donald Trump adminitration intended to keep existing attorneys general, at least temporarily, only to end up abruptly firing them all at once. Duration: 2:59
Trump baffles U.S. attorneys with sudden mass firing
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/18/17
Paul Fishman, former U.S. attorney, talks with Rachel Maddow about the unexpectedly abrupt nature of the Donald Trump administration's firing of all of the U.S. attorneys. Duration: 4:20
Reuters reports that Trump campaign advisers had at least 18 previously undisclosed calls and emails with Russians during the campaign and sought a back channel with Vladimir Putin. Ned Price and Steve Clemons join Lawrence O'Donnell. Duration: 7:20
Why Trump keeps contact with investigation targets
The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell 5/18/17
Fmr. Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and fired National Security Advisor Michael Flynn are reportedly targets of the Russia investigation – so why does Trump want to maintain contact with them both? Indira Lakshmanan and Ken Vogel join Lawrence O'Donnell. Duration: 7:45
Report: More memos detail Comey's unease with Pres. Trump
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/18/17
The New York Times confirms the existence of multiple memos written by fired FBI boss James Comey as the president calls the Russia investigation a 'witch hunt.' Our political panel reacts. Duration: 11:07
Report: Comey tried to blend in with W.H. curtains to avoid Trump
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/18/17
A New York Times report about Comey's unease with Pres. Trump states that Comey tried to use a blue suit and stand in front of the curtains in the Blue Room to avoid Trump in January. Duration: 1:02
With a special counsel now over the FBI's Russia probe, is it time for the president to turn to his own lawyers? Fmr. Clinton attorney Bob Bennett & fmr. DOJ Spokesman Matt Miller react. Duration: 9:09
Trump reportedly wants Mike Flynn back in the White House
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/18/17
Spicer is out? Trump wants Flynn back? Mike Pence is being kept out of the loop? MSNBC's Brian Williams looks a the flurry of White House reports with Ali Velshi & Matthew Nussbaum. Duration: 4:59
So Much News, So Little Time - Protester Attacks & Trump-Russia Bombshells: The Daily Show
Published on May 18, 2017 by The Daily Show with Trevor Noah
Turkish guards beat up protesters in Washington D.C., Robert Mueller is named special prosecutor in the Russia probe, and President Trump plays the victim on Twitter.
Full Show - Democrats Call for Overturn of 2016 Election - 05/19/2017
Published on May 19, 2017 by The Alex Jones Channel
Friday, May 19th 2017[, with appearances by Tommy Robinson and Andrew Torba]: Trump On Diplomacy Tour - President Trump is protecting American interests as he takes a 15,600 mile diplomacy tour across the Middle East. Best-selling author David Horowitz joins the broadcast to share his take on the increasingly hostile tension between the left and right in the U.S. and Dr. Steve Pieczenik discusses the deep state coup against Trump; Alex Jones, David Horowitz, and Roger Stone [who hosts the fourth hour] break down the left's current initiative to impeach President Trump and challenge the results of the 2016 Presidential Election.
Before Trump was elected, Hillary Clinton warned us that his presidency would be a danger for our troops, our alliances, and our democracy. Read the full transcript below. Photo by AP Photo/John Locher.
TRANSCRIPT:
HILLARY CLINTON, Nov. 3, 2016: My opponent has already revealed who he is.
TEXT: We were warned about a Trump presidency.
CLINTON, Oct. 19, 2016: The United States has kept the peace through our alliances. Donald wants to tear up our alliances.
CNN, Four months later: Trump was badgering the Australian prime minister...
PBS NEWSHOUR, Five months later: Merkel offering to shake hands, but getting no response.
FOX BUSINESS, Three months later: A million people have signed it. The petition asks the Queen of England to withdraw her scheduled state meeting with President Trump.
CLINTON, Oct. 19, 2016: He would rather believe Vladimir Putin than the military and civilian intelligence professionals who are sworn to protect us.
CBS, Seven months later: President Trump shared highly classified information with the Russian foreign minister and ambassador.
CLINTON, June 2, 2016: A President has a sacred responsibility to send our troops into battle only if we absolutely must, and only with a clear and well-thought-out strategy. Our troops give their all. They deserve a commander-in-chief who knows that.
ABC, Eight months later: The U.S. Military now launching investigation into the civilian casualties in that deadly terror raid in Yemen. Navy Seal Ryan Owens was killed in action.
TIM KAINE, Sept. 5, 2016: We who like Donald Trump encouraged crooks to undertake espionage against the DNC in a presidential year to gain an edge in an election and that led to the impeachment and resignation of that presidential candidate, President Nixon
PBS NEWSHOUR, Eight months later: The disclosure that President Trump allegedly asked Jim Comey to drop an FBI investigation has raised the question of whether this may constitute obstruction of justice.
CBS, Eight months later: Obstruction of justice was the main charge against President Bill Clinton when he was impeached in 1998. President Richard Nixon faced the same accusation before he resigned in 1974.
TEXT: It's unprecedented but we shouldn't be shocked.
ZACK GALIFIANAKIS: When he’s elected president and Kid Rock becomes secretary of state are you going to move to Canada? Or one of the Arctics?
CLINTON: I will stay in the United States.
GALIFIANAKIS: And what would you try to --
CLINTON: -- try to prevent him from destroying the United States.
Sen. Warner: 'Outrageous' that Trump called Comey a 'nut job'
All In with Chris Hayes 5/19/17
The ranking member of the Senate Intelligence Committee called it wildly inappropriate for the president to discuss firing James Comey with Russian officials. Duration: 4:37
Video evidence emerged today of Hillary Clinton practicing how to avoid an unwanted hug from Donald Trump in front of the cameras at their first debate. Duration: 1:35
Trump-Russia probe turns to White House adviser as it speeds up
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/19/17
Devlin Barrett, national security reporter for The Washington Post, talks with Rachel Maddow on another busy news day about new reporting that the Trump-Russia investigation has moved to a White House adviser close to Donald Trump. Duration: 19:13
How might Donald Trump try to end the special investigation?
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/19/17
Rachel Maddow looks at some ways by which Donald Trump could try to get in the way of the Trump-Russia special investigation or eliminate it entirely. Duration: 7:01
Can the Trump-Russia special counsel be undermined by Trump?
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/19/17
Neal Katyal, former US acting solicitor general who helped draft the special counsel regulations, talks with Rachel Maddow about the ways in which Donald Trump might seek to undermine or eliminate the Trump-Russia special investigation. Duration: 6:13
Espionage prosecutor leads Mike Flynn grand jury inquiry for DOJ
The Rachel Maddow Show 5/19/17
Rachel Maddow looks at some of the background of Brandon Van Grak, the veteran Justice Department prosecutor who specializes in espionage and now reportedly leads the grand jury inquiry into disgraced Trump NSA Michael Flynn. Duration: 2:38
Barbara McQuade, former U.S. attorney, talks with Rachel Maddow about what is means to be an espionage prosecutor and why one might be assigned to the the case of disgraced Donald Trump NSA Mike Flynn. Duration: 4:00
Rachel Maddow shows how a request for more resources preceding James Comey's firing was widely reported in the media but is adamantly denied by the Department of Justice - an irreconcilable contradiction. Duration: 5:14
Watergate lawyer: Obstruction of justice evidence 'overwhelming'
The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell 5/19/17
James Comey will testify before the Senate Intel Committee after Memorial Day. And a W.H. official is a "significant person of interest" in the Russia probe. Nicholas Kristof, Michael Isikoff, and Jill Wine-Banks join Lawrence O'Donnell. Duration: 16:09
In intervention, Trump told tweets could pose legal problem
The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell 5/19/17
The Wall Street Journal reports WH staff had an "intervention" with Donald Trump about his tweets weeks ago. WSJ reporter Eli Stokols joins Lawrence O'Donnell. Ana Marie Cox and Josh Barro react. Duration: 11:35
NYT: Trump told Russians stress off after firing 'nut job' Comey
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/19/17
The White House isn't denying a New York Times report that Trump told the Russians the pressure was off from the Russia probe after firing 'crazy, nut job' James Comey. Our panel reacts. Duration: 9:19
Leaks in the Trump White House 'go to the very top'
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/19/17
MSNBC's Brian Williams discusses incredibly sensitive nature of the leaks we're now reading in reports about the inner workings of the Trump White House with our political panel. Duration: 8:00
Eli Stokols: Trump is facing something like a soft coup d'état
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/19/17
Given the volume and substance of the leaks coming from the Trump White House, Wall Street Journal reporter Eli Stokols explains the checks these leaks have on Trump's presidential power. Duration: 2:41
Fmr DOJ Prosecutor: FBI suspects a criminal in Trump White House
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 5/19/17
What kinds of legal troubles could the Trump White House have to face in the wake of the growing FBI Russia investigation? Two former DOJ lawyers, Paul Butler & Carrie Cordero, join to discuss. Duration: 6:16
Boris Epshteyn Interview | Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO)
Published on May 19, 2017 by Real Time with Bill Maher
Boris Epshteyn – Sinclair Broadcast Group Chief Political Analyst and former Special Assistant to President Trump – joins Bill to discuss President Trump's political future.
I Don't Know if For a Fact | Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO)
Published on May 19, 2017 by Real Time with Bill Maher
Long before Donald Trump was "hearing things," Bill Maher was making baseless assertions in a segment called "I Don't Know It For a Fact...I Just Know It's True.
Bill Maher went toe-to-toe with professor and social activist Cornel West over the 2016 election, with Maher confronting West for calling Hillary Clinton and President Donald Trump “equally awful.”
West, a prominent backer of Sen. Bernie Sanders, insisted that the Vermont independent could have won the election, and took a shot at Clinton after Maher pointed out that one of the former Secretary of State’s first speeches as a candidate was about mass incarceration that disproportionately affects young black men.
“Hillary gave speeches about a whole lot of stuff,” West shot back,” but it didn’t have a whole lot of integrity in it, brother.”
“That is such bullshit,” Maher parried.
After West went off on a tirade insisting that Sanders would have won, he admitted that Clinton is “better than Trump,” at which point Maher yelled back, “A lot better than Trump.”
“That doesn’t take too much, who isn’t better than Trump?” West replied.
“That isn’t an answer. It’s glib, it’s beneath you.” Maher lectured. “For someone who’s such an intellectual, that answer is beneath you.”
Published on May 20, 2017 by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
Finding himself in the same boat as InfoWar's Alex Jones, Stephen's right-wing satirical character Tuck Buckford has to apologize for some recent slanderous claims.
Joy Reid and her panel[, (obviously) including Malcolm Nance,] discuss Donald Trump’s first foreign trip, and how many world leaders view his White House as full of ‘chaos’ and ‘mayhem.’ Duration: 12:51
Watergate prosecutor Jill Wine-Banks joins Joy Reid on what she says seems to be an apparent ‘accumulation of episodes that are clear obstruction of justice’ on the part of Trump’s camp. Duration: 7:20
Donald Trump may have jeopardized America’s ability to recruit intelligence gatherers by sharing Israeli intelligence with Russian officials. Joy and her panel discuss. Duration: 8:22
Rep. Al Green: Not even president is above the law
AM Joy 5/20/17
Democratic Congressman Al Green of Texas tells Joy Reid that he has received death threats since calling for Donald Trump’s impeachment from the House floor. Joy Reid and he panel discuss what it would take to remove Trump. Duration: 15:48
Callers threaten Texas lawmaker who seeks Trump impeachment In this Monday, May 15, 2017 photo, Congressman Al Green speaks to media during a press conference in which he called for the impeachment of President Donald Trump at the Houston Congressional District Office in Houston. The black Texas congressman said Saturday, May 20, that he’s been threatened with lynching by callers infuriated over him seeking impeachment of President Trump. May 20, 2017 https://www.apnews.com/aa756e87539c4a48b7101433ee791e60/Callers-threaten-Texas-lawmaker-who-seeks-Trump-impeachment
Joy Reid and her panel discuss how, now that a special prosecutor is investigating their Russian ties, facts could come to light implicating a large radius of Trump’s associates – and relatives. Duration: 7:48
Republicans have excused recent gaffes from their party as mere ‘jokes,’ so Joy Reid brought in an expert – comedian Kathy Griffin – for her take on their explanations. Duration: 6:17
Weekend Update on Comey's Investigation into Trump - SNL
Published on May 20, 2017 by Saturday Night Live
Weekend Update anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che tackle the week's biggest news, including President Donald Trump asking James Comey when he would announce Trump is not under investigation. Dawn Lazarus (Vanessa Bayer) stops by with the weather.
Analysis // Trump's Russian Intel Leak Is the Last Thing Netanyahu Needs Trump's negligent revelation of an ally's intelligence on ISIS to Russia raises concern about three kinds of damage http://www.haaretz.com/us-news/.premium-1.789513
Trump turns to ex-campaign aides as scandals pile up He has brought Corey Lewandowski, Jason Miller and David Bossie back into his orbit. Former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski was spotted in the West Wing lobby on Tuesday, according to two White House officials. http://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/17/trump-scandals-miller-bossie-lewandowski-238520
‘Brothers in arms’: The long friendship between Mueller and Comey They’ve been described as law enforcement twins and “brothers in arms.” Once again, James Comey and Robert Mueller — two respected FBI veterans — have found themselves sharing the same high-profile headlines. The two men’s working relationship can be traced back to at least December of 2003, when Comey joined Mueller in Washington after he became John Ashcroft’s deputy attorney general, according to a 2013 Washingtonian article about the two men’s long0standing relationship. “He and Mueller spent many hours together, developing a close partnership — and watching together the disarray in the government over how to respond to the unfolding war on terror,” Washingtonian notes. “They shared a horror at the poor quality information infiltrating the upper reaches of government.” The article goes on to point to personal similarities as well as professional. Both men were educated at Virginia universities — Mueller at the University of Virginia, Comey at William & Mary. “Just years apart in the 1990s, they both gave up their top-tier private law firm jobs to return to the trenches of prosecuting criminals — Mueller as a junior prosecutor in Washington, DC, and Comey in Richmond, Virginia,” Washingtonian reports. “Both men were rising stars mentored and guided by Eric Holder in the 1990s during Holder’s time in the Justice Department under the Clinton administration.” Their relationship was made stronger during an incident in 2004. At the time, the Los Angeles Times reported, Comey, Mueller and a number of other law enforcement officials were on the verge of resigning in opposition to a Bush administration plan to reauthorize a domestic surveillance program that was launched after the terror attacks of 9/11. President Bush eventually agreed to modify the secret program after both men jointly intervened — an experience that is suspected to have drawn them even closer. [...] https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2017/live-updates/trump-white-house/trump-comey-and-russia-how-key-washington-players-are-reacting/brothers-in-arms-the-long-friendship-between-mueller-and-comey/
A Russian state bank reportedly financed an $850 million deal with a Trump business partner Trump International Hotel in Toronto may have been built with the help of Russian funds. https://thinkprogress.org/russian-bank-involved-with-trump-business-partner-ac1393e9d95c citing: Russian State-Run Bank Financed Deal Involving Trump Hotel Partner Russian-Canadian developer put money into Toronto project after receiving hundreds of millions from deal involving VEB VEB, a Russian state-run bank under scrutiny by U.S. investigators, financed a deal involving Donald Trump’s onetime partner in a Toronto hotel tower at a key moment for the project, according to people familiar with the transaction. Alexander Shnaider, a Russian-Canadian developer who built the 65-story Trump International Hotel and Tower, put money into the project after receiving hundreds of millions of dollars from a ... [...] https://www.wsj.com/articles/russian-state-run-bank-financed-deal-involving-trump-hotel-partner-1495031708
Trump meets with lawyers at the White House President Donald Trump convened his legal team on Thursday to discuss the escalating investigation into whether his campaign colluded with Russia during the 2016 election. The huddle, according to four people briefed, took place the day after it was announced that former FBI Director Robert Mueller would serve as the investigation’s special counsel. [...] http://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/18/trump-lawyers-white-house-238579
Stocks Surged As Trading Floors Watched 'Breaking' InfoWars Video. It Was Two Weeks Old, and Wrong. Traders and analysts are wondering if “Infowars [is] a site I have to start reading now” to gauge what the average person believes is true in the middle of a “propaganda war.” As a video circulated that appeared to partially absolve President Donald Trump in the administration’s Russian meddling scandal on trading floors on Thursday, stocks surged for the first time in days on the apparent breaking news. The video, it turns out, was actually two weeks old, misleadingly edited with the intention of falsely accusing former FBI director James Comey of perjury—and was initially aired by conspiracy website InfoWars on Thursday around noon. Trump wasn’t cleared. In fact, since the video had been around since May 3rd, nothing had changed at all. But by the time traders found out, the dollar index had spiked anyway. The fallout of the story is leaving analysts wondering how to absorb information in a market that is suddenly waiting on bated breath for the latest rumors to come out of the White House—even when those rumors are intentionally misleading or untrue. “The market is used to trading on rumors. There are always rumors of takeovers or bankruptcies. In those situations, when you bet on a rumor, you lose big time,” Adam Button, the chief currency analyst at ForexLive, told The Daily Beast. “With political rumors, they don’t have to be true.” In other words, the news can be fake, but the rally it creates in the stock market is very real. Button was one of the first to trace the bump in the American dollar back to InfoWars on Thursday. “It’s an unprecedented time. The market is getting a taste of what the post-truth world looks like,“ said Button. An InfoWars segment and article posted around noon titled “Breaking! Comey Caught Committing Perjury to Congress” shows Comey saying “he has not been pressured to close an investigation." The clip on InfoWars omits that the question, asked by Hawaii Senator Mazie Hirono, specifically asks Comey if the attorney general or Department of Justice has asked him to close the investigation, and doesn’t mention President Trump. The InfoWars story ends with the sentence “This story is developing,” even though Comey’s testimony had occurred 15 days ago. No further updates arrived. [...] http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2017/05/18/stocks-surged-as-trading-floors-watched-breaking-infowars-video-it-was-two-weeks-old-and-wrong the video: Comey Caught Committing Perjury To Congress? - and 5-18-17 full show https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEyYu4aJgiY This video proves that James Comey perjured himself to Congress claiming that no one had asked him to halt the investigation into the Trump/Russia connection. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OgDai05bkU
VP Mike Pence Was Never Informed About Flynn: Source Vice President Mike Pence has been kept in the dark about former National Security Adviser Mike Flynn's alleged wrongdoing, according to a source close to the administration, who cited a potential "pattern" of not informing the vice president and calling it "malpractice or intentional, and either are unacceptable." A White House spokesman called The Times' report "flat wrong" on Thursday, but the latest revelations, including a report that Flynn called off a military mission in Raqqa after working as a foreign agent for Turkey, only broadened the scope of questions around Flynn's time as an adviser to the Trump campaign and the eventual National Security Adviser. [...] http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/aide-claims-pattern-keep-vice-president-pence-out-loop-n761916
Trump Told Russians That Firing ‘Nut Job’ Comey Eased Pressure From Investigation - White House not disputing (per MSNBC) - during Oval Office meeting when he gave them the code-word intel - NYT apparently(?) has a transcript https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/19/us/politics/trump-russia-comey.html
Trump-Russia probe now includes possible cover-up, Congress is told WASHINGTON - Investigators into Russian meddling in the U.S. presidential elections are now also probing whether White House officials have engaged in a cover-up, according to members of Congress who were briefed Friday by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. That avenue of investigation was added in recent weeks after assertions by former FBI Director James Comey that President Donald Trump had tried to dissuade him from pressing an investigation into the actions of Trump’s first national security adviser, retired Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, members of Congress said, though it was not clear whom that part of the probe might target. [...] http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/congress/article151565947.html
365 days of Trump’s claims The Fact Checker’s ongoing database of President Trump’s 586 false and misleading claims since January 20th Repeated 28 times: Feb 9 Feb 10 Feb 16 Feb 17 Feb 18 Feb 24 Feb 28 Feb 28 Mar 6 Mar 13 Mar 15 Mar 17 Mar 21 Mar 23 Mar 24 Mar 24 Mar 28 Mar 28 Mar 29 Mar 31 Apr 2 Apr 4 Apr 11 Apr 21 Apr 29 May 1 May 17 May 18 https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/trump-claims-database/
James Comey Will Testify Publicly Before Congress The ousted FBI director will discuss the political firestorm surrounding his dismissal in an upcoming Senate Intelligence Committee hearing, senators announced Friday. James Comey, the former FBI director whose sudden firing last week by President Trump sparked a massive political firestorm that has yet to abate, will testify in an open hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee. Senators Richard Burr and Mark Warner, the committee’s Republican chair and Democratic vice chair, said Comey would speak some time after Memorial Day on May 29. [...] https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/05/comey-congress-testify/527523/
Trump's aides hosted an 'intervention' to try to tone down his Twitter use Aides warned Trump his tweets could "paint him into a corner" potentially compromising him both politically and legally. http://www.businessinsider.com/trump-twitter-intervention-2017-5 citing: Fired FBI Director James Comey to Testify in Public Aides to President Donald Trump brace for new environment after the appointment of a special counsel WASHINGTON - Former FBI Director James Comey has agreed to testify publicly in Congress, capping a week that may shape President Donald Trump’s administration for months, or even years, and prompting White House aides to rethink how they operate in this new political and legal environment. [...] https://www.wsj.com/articles/fired-fbi-director-james-comey-to-testify-in-public-1495242168
A Conservative Christian College Protest of Mike Pence GROVE CITY, Pa. — On Saturday, Vice President Mike Pence will give the commencement address at Grove City College, the small Christian institution in Western Pennsylvania where I am a junior. A few years ago, Mr. Pence would have been a noncontroversial choice. Other prominent Republicans, including Ben Carson, Jeb Bush and Laura Bush, have spoken here, and the school is known for its conservative values. Indeed, the phrase “conservative values” is in the Grove City mission statement. But the announcement that Mr. Pence would be commencement speaker this year drew considerable backlash. Alumni and students flooded administrators’ inboxes with emails protesting the decision, and faculty members have called for boycotts. Many who oppose the decision say that hosting Mr. Pence will serve as an endorsement of the current president. [...] https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/19/opinion/mike-pence-college-protest.html
Former Trump campaign aide seeks legal help -- from Trump The former volunteer is racking up legal fees after hiring a lawyer to respond to the Russia probe "My heart aches," a former campaign official said of ex-staffers who might be caught up in the investigation http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/20/politics/trump-aide-legal-funds/
To Trump, Human Rights Concerns Are Often a Barrier to Trade RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson had some advice on Saturday for Iran’s newly re-elected president. The Trump administration, he said, hopes Tehran “restores the rights of Iranians to freedom of speech, to freedom of organization, so that Iranians can live the life that they deserve.” As he said that at a news conference, Mr. Tillerson was standing next to the Saudi foreign minister, Adel al-Jubeir, who represents a government that does not guarantee free speech or many other rights. When Mr. Tillerson turned to leave, a reporter asked if he had anything to say about human rights in Saudi Arabia. The secretary departed without answering. President Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia [ https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/20/world/middleeast/donald-trump-saudi-arabia.html ] underscored the calculation he and his foreign policy advisers have made when it comes to questions of human rights around the world. Mr. Trump and his team made clear they are willing to publicly overlook repression in places like Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states whose leaders are meeting here this weekend — as long as they are allies in areas the president considers more important, namely security and economics. [...] https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/20/world/middleeast/rex-w-tillerson-saudi-arabia-human-rights.html
Embroiled in controversies, Trump seeks boost on foreign trip [...] 'DON'T THINK HE UNDERSTANDS IT' Some doubt whether Trump, a businessman-turned politician who never held elective office before becoming president in January, is ready for a smooth presidential debut abroad. One Republican official, who requested anonymity in order to speak freely, said after meeting Trump recently he did not think the president had a firm enough grasp on the nuances of the long-running Israeli-Palestinian conflict. "I don't think he understands it," said the official, adding that Trump needed more detailed briefings before leaving on Friday. "I think it's a very difficult challenge and I hope he's going to talk to a lot of smart people." White House advisers insisted Trump was up to speed on the Middle East, having already hosted Arab, Israeli and Palestinian leaders at the White House. “His way of doing diplomacy, which really contrasts with President Obama's approach, is to ... prioritize the personal relationship," said Michael Singh, a foreign policy adviser to former Republican President George W. Bush. To prepare for his trip, Trump has been meeting with briefers including Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, White House national security adviser H.R. McMaster, deputy national security adviser Dina Powell and senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner. Conversations with some officials who have briefed Trump and others who are aware of how he absorbs information portray a president with a short attention span. He likes single-page memos and visual aids like maps, charts, graphs and photos. National Security Council officials have strategically included Trump's name in "as many paragraphs as we can because he keeps reading if he's mentioned," according to one source, who relayed conversations he had with NSC officials. Trump likes to look at a map of the country involved when he learns about a topic. "He likes to visualize things," said a senior administration official. "The guy's a builder. He has spent his whole life looking at architectural renderings and floor plans." [...] http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-trip-idUSKCN18D0C7
Look Back at Trump's Remarks on Muslims, Saudi Arabia - video From involvement in the Sept. 11th attacks to surveillance of certain mosques, Donald Trump has made controversial remarks about Muslims and Saudi Arabia. Here's a look back at those comments. http://www.nbcnews.com/video/trump-on-saudi-arabia-muslims-and-islam-948679747977
‘People Here Think Trump Is a Laughingstock’ On the president’s ill-timed world tour. "Chaos.” “Circus.” “Laughingstock.” Those were just a few of the comments I heard in Berlin this week from senior European officials trying to make sense of the meltdown in Washington at just the moment when a politically imploding President Trump embarks on what he called “my big foreign trip” in this morning’s kickoff tweet. [...] http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/05/19/trump-first-foreign-trip-europe-215163
Trump tells advisers he wants to end key Obamacare subsidies Many senior aides oppose the move for fear it will backfire politically. President Donald Trump has told advisers he wants to end payments of key Obamacare subsidies, a move that could send the health law's insurance markets into a tailspin, according to several sources familiar with the conversations. Many advisers oppose the move because they worry it would backfire politically if people lose their insurance or see huge premium spikes and blame the White House, the sources said. Trump has said that the bold move could force Congressional Democrats to the table to negotiate an Obamacare replacement. Lawyers and other administration officials are trying to thread the needle. Trump told aides in a Tuesday Oval Office meeting that he wants to end the payments to insurers because he doesn't gain anything by continuing them, according to a senior White House adviser. "Why the hell would we?" he asked about continuing the payments, according to the adviser. Trump added that if Congress wants the subsidies, lawmakers would find a way to pay for them, the adviser said. Trump has previously expressed conflicting opinions on the issue. Insurers have been pressing for certainty as they plan for next year. The payments, estimated at $7 billion for this year, go to insurance companies to reduce deductibles and other out-of-pocket costs for low-income consumers — an estimated 7 million people in 2017. Insurers are on the hook under the health law to keep paying even if the federal money stops. [...] http://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/19/donald-trump-end-payments-obamacare-subsidies-238616
Trumpcare Is Already Hurting Trump Country Editorial The mere threat that Obamacare will be dismantled or radically changed — either by Congress or by President Trump himself — has persuaded several big insurance companies to stop selling policies or significantly raise premiums. The practical effect is that some lower-income and middle-class families may have no good options for insurance and will have to spend more on health care. [...] https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/19/opinion/trumpcare-health-care-bill.html
Approval of President Trump drops to lowest since inauguration: Reuters/Ipsos poll Public approval of President Donald Trump has dropped to its lowest level since his inauguration, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Friday, after Trump was accused of mishandling classified information and meddling with an FBI investigation. The May 14-18 opinion poll found that 38 percent of adults approved of Trump while 56 percent disapproved. The remaining 6 percent had "mixed feelings." [...] http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-poll-idUSKCN18F2AH
Follow the data: does a legal document link Brexit campaigns to US billionaire? We reveal how a confidential legal agreement is at the heart of a web connecting Robert Mercer to Britain’s EU referendum On 18 November 2015, the British press gathered in a hall in Westminster to witness the official launch of Leave.EU. Nigel Farage, the campaign’s figurehead, was banished to the back of the room and instead an American political strategist, Gerry Gunster, took centre stage and explained its strategy. “The one thing that I know is data,” he said. “Numbers do not lie. I’m going to follow the data.” Eighteen months on, it’s this same insight – to follow the data – that is the key to unlocking what really happened behind the scenes of the Leave campaign. On the surface, the two main campaigns, Leave.EU and Vote Leave, hated one other. Their leading lights, Farage and Boris Johnson, were sworn enemies for the duration of the referendum. The two campaigns bitterly refused even to share a platform. But the Observer has seen a confidential document that provides clear evidence of a link between the two campaigns. More precisely, evidence of a close working relationship between the two data analytics firms employed by the campaigns – AggregateIQ, which Vote Leave hired, and Cambridge Analytica, retained by Leave.EU. British electoral law is founded on the principle of a level playing field and controlling campaign spending is the key plank of that. The law states that different campaigns must not work together unless they declare their expenditure jointly. This controls spending limits so that no side can effectively “buy” an election. But this signed legal document – a document that was never meant to be made public and was leaked by a concerned source – connects both Vote Leave and Leave.EU’s data firms directly to Robert Mercer, the American billionaire who bankrolled Donald Trump. [...] https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/may/14/robert-mercer-cambridge-analytica-leave-eu-referendum-brexit-campaigns
‘The Internet Is Broken’: @ev Is Trying to Salvage It SAN FRANCISCO — Evan Williams is the guy who opened up Pandora’s box. Until he came along, people had few places to go with their overflowing emotions and wild opinions, other than writing a letter to the newspaper or haranguing the neighbors. Mr. Williams — a Twitter founder, a co-creator of Blogger — set everyone free, providing tools to address the world. In the history of communications technology, it was a development with echoes of Gutenberg. And so here we are in 2017. How’s it going, Mr. Williams? “I think the internet is broken,” he says. He has believed this for a few years, actually. But things are getting worse. “And it’s a lot more obvious to a lot of people that it’s broken.” People are using Facebook to showcase suicides, beatings and murder, in real time. Twitter is a hive of trolling and abuse that it seems unable to stop. Fake news, whether created for ideology or profit, runs rampant. Four out of 10 adult internet users said in a Pew survey that they had been harassed online. And that was before the presidential campaign heated up last year. “I thought once everybody could speak freely and exchange information and ideas, the world is automatically going to be a better place,” Mr. Williams says. “I was wrong about that.” The Silicon Valley entrepreneur first drew notice during the dot-com boom, for developing software that allowed users to easily set up a website for broadcasting their thoughts: blogging. By the time Google bought the company in 2003, more than a million people were using it. Then came Twitter, which wasn’t his idea but was his company. He remains the largest individual shareholder and a board member. After fame and fortune come regrets. Mr. Williams is trying to fix some things. So, in different ways, are Google and Facebook, and even Twitter. This is a moment for patches and promises. The trouble with the internet, Mr. Williams says, is that it rewards extremes. Say you’re driving down the road and see a car crash. Of course you look. Everyone looks. The internet interprets behavior like this to mean everyone is asking for car crashes, so it tries to supply them. His goal is to break this pattern. “If I learn that every time I drive down this road I’m going to see more and more car crashes,” he says, “I’m going to take a different road.” But a new road may have other problems. It may, for instance, be a dead end. Mr. Williams isn’t the only one trying to fix this mess, of course. If he and others can’t find a path forward, if they can’t solve what he calls “the architecture of content creation, distribution and monetization on the internet,” there are unsettling implications for the future of news and ideas. Maybe it will be all car crashes, all the time. Twitter already feels like that. For five years, Mr. Williams has been refining a communications platform called Medium. Its ambition: define a new model for media in a world struggling under the weight of fake or worthless content. Medium is supposed to be social and collaborative without rewarding the smash-ups. It is supposed to be a force for good. “A beautiful space for reading and writing — and little else,” Mr. Williams called Medium at its public debut in 2012. “The words are central.” [...] A few years ago, Twitter was viewed as a tool of liberation. It enabled, some believed, the Arab Spring uprisings in the Middle East. Twitter, like the internet itself, was putting tyranny on a short leash. Then the narrative turned darker, with the rise of trolling on the platform. President Trump has said he believes Twitter put him in the White House. Recently, Mr. Williams heard the claim for the first time. He mulled it over for a bit, sitting in his Medium office, which is noteworthy only for not having a desk. “It’s a very bad thing, Twitter’s role in that,” he said finally. “If it’s true that he wouldn’t be president if it weren’t for Twitter, then yeah, I’m sorry.” The White House did not respond to a request for comment on Mr. Williams’s remarks. [...] https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/20/technology/evan-williams-medium-twitter-internet.html
Stocks Surged As Trading Floors Watched 'Breaking' InfoWars Video. It Was Two Weeks Old, and Wrong. Traders and analysts are wondering if “Infowars [is] a site I have to start reading now” to gauge what the average person believes is true in the middle of a “propaganda war.” As a video circulated that appeared to partially absolve President Donald Trump in the administration’s Russian meddling scandal on trading floors on Thursday, stocks surged for the first time in days on the apparent breaking news. The video, it turns out, was actually two weeks old, misleadingly edited with the intention of falsely accusing former FBI director James Comey of perjury—and was initially aired by conspiracy website InfoWars on Thursday around noon. Trump wasn’t cleared. In fact, since the video had been around since May 3rd, nothing had changed at all. But by the time traders found out, the dollar index had spiked anyway. The fallout of the story is leaving analysts wondering how to absorb information in a market that is suddenly waiting on bated breath for the latest rumors to come out of the White House—even when those rumors are intentionally misleading or untrue. “The market is used to trading on rumors. There are always rumors of takeovers or bankruptcies. In those situations, when you bet on a rumor, you lose big time,” Adam Button, the chief currency analyst at ForexLive, told The Daily Beast. “With political rumors, they don’t have to be true.” In other words, the news can be fake, but the rally it creates in the stock market is very real. Button was one of the first to trace the bump in the American dollar back to InfoWars on Thursday. “It’s an unprecedented time. The market is getting a taste of what the post-truth world looks like,“ said Button. An InfoWars segment and article posted around noon titled “Breaking! Comey Caught Committing Perjury to Congress” shows Comey saying “he has not been pressured to close an investigation." The clip on InfoWars omits that the question, asked by Hawaii Senator Mazie Hirono, specifically asks Comey if the attorney general or Department of Justice has asked him to close the investigation, and doesn’t mention President Trump. The InfoWars story ends with the sentence “This story is developing,” even though Comey’s testimony had occurred 15 days ago. No further updates arrived. [...] http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2017/05/18/stocks-surged-as-trading-floors-watched-breaking-infowars-video-it-was-two-weeks-old-and-wrong the video: Comey Caught Committing Perjury To Congress? - and 5-18-17 full show https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEyYu4aJgiY This video proves that James Comey perjured himself to Congress claiming that no one had asked him to halt the investigation into the Trump/Russia connection. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OgDai05bkU
Slain DNC Staffer’s Family Orders Blabbing Detective to ‘Cease and Desist’ - at https://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=131520771 The family of slain Democratic staffer Seth Rich [ http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/dnc-staffer-s-murder-draws-fresh-conspiracy-theories-n760186 ] is threatening legal action against a private investigator after his "outrageous behavior" has given fuel to right-wing conspiracy theories about the unsolved murder of their son. An attorney representing the family of Rich, who was 27 when he was killed last July, sent a cease and desist letter Friday to Rod Wheeler, a Fox News contributor and former Washington, D.C., homicide detective who was employed by the family and earlier this week told a Fox affiliate that he believed police were covering up details about the crime. [...] Wheeler's contract with the Rich family prohibited him from speaking to the press without prior approval from the family, a clause he apparently violated when he spoke to Fox 5 D.C. Monday for a story that quickly went viral on the right. Rich's family also has demanded a retraction and apology from Fox 5 D.C. for the story, but has so far not received one. Wheeler has since completely recanted his story, both in the press and in a private message to Rich's family. The private investigator told other outlets the Fox reporter essentially put words in his mouth by giving him information that he then repeated in an on-camera interview. "That story on Fox 5 last night was inaccurate," he told BuzzFeed [ https://www.buzzfeed.com/claudiakoerner/the-private-detective-who-ignited-a-clinton-conspiracy ]. [...] http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/slain-dnc-staffer-s-family-orders-blabbing-detective-cease-desist-n762211
This WHITE Teen Admitted She Made Up Claims She Was Abducted And Raped By "Three Black Males" - Denison, Texas Local police called the hoax “offensive to the African-American community.” The false accusations were also used by white nationalists to push their agenda online. https://www.buzzfeed.com/tanyachen/teen-claims-she-was-raped-by-three-black-males-hoax
White nationalist claims Trump directed rally violence Trump supporter asks a federal court to hold the president liable for any damages stemming from a lawsuit filed by protesters who attended a Kentucky campaign stop. http://www.politico.com/story/2017/04/donald-trump-rally-violence-237302
Trump lawyer: ‘No right’ to protest at rallies The president’s lawyers file a motion to derail a lawsuit brought by protesters President Donald Trump’s lawyers argued in a Thursday court filing that protesters “have no right” to “express dissenting views” at his campaign rallies because such protests infringed on his First Amendment rights. The filing comes in a case brought by three protesters who allege they were roughed up and ejected from a March 2016 Trump campaign rally in Louisville, Kentucky, by Trump supporters who were incited by the then-candidate’s calls from the stage to “get 'em out of here!” Lawyers for Trump’s campaign have argued that his calls to remove the protesters were protected by the First Amendment. But the federal district court judge hearing the case issued a ruling late last month questioning that argument, as well as the claim that Trump didn’t intend for his supporters to use force. The ruling cleared the case to proceed into discovery and towards a trial. Thursday’s filing by Trump’s campaign lawyers asks the judge to pause the proceedings and allow Trump’s legal team to appeal the ruling to a higher court “before subjecting the President to ‘unique’ and extraordinary burdens of litigation.” Specifically, Trump’s lawyers want the appeals court to reconsider whether Trump’s calls to remove the protesters were protected speech under the First Amendment and whether it’s reasonable to construe the calls as an incitement to violence. [...] http://www.politico.com/story/2017/04/20/donald-trump-protest-rallies-speech-237431
Trump lawyers seek a quick end to rally violence lawsuits - and they might get it Do protesters really “have no right” to dissent at Trump rallies? President Donald Trump’s lawyers want judges to dismiss a lawsuit over violence at his campaign rallies because protesters don’t actually have the right to dissent inside his speaking halls. People can “express dissenting views” but “have no right to do so as part of the campaign rally of the political candidates they oppose,” Trump’s team argued in a Thursday court filing. The case involves the avowed white nationalist Matthew Heimbach, who physically assailed a black woman named Kashiya Nwanguma as she protested inside a Trump rally in Kentucky in 2016. Heimbach, Trump, and the Trump campaign are co-defendants. Heimbach recently argued to the court that Trump and his campaign are the only people who should be liable for what rally attendees did or didn’t do to Nwanguma that day. Fellow Trump supporter Alvin Bamberger helped Heimbach and is also named in the suit. His lawyers argue, as Heimbach does, that their client would never have done anything to Nwanguma if Trump hadn’t told him to. “To the extent that Bamberger acted, he did so in response to - and inspired by - Trump and/or the Trump Campaign’s urging to remove the protesters,” they wrote in a recent filing. The supporters’ arguments and Trump’s own thus appear to be at odds. But Trump’s lawyers aren’t denying that supporters acted in response to what he said - they’re saying he was within his rights to try to remove protesters, with physical force, and is not culpable if the force they actually used went beyond what was necessary to get protesters out of the building. [...] https://thinkprogress.org/trump-rally-violence-lawsuit-25f8f1f79b81
Serena Williams’ Response To Racist Comments: ‘Does My Sassiness Upset You?’ The tennis star quoted Maya Angelou after Ilie Nastase’s alleged comments about Williams’ unborn child. Serena Williams responded Monday to Ilie Nastase’s alleged racist comments about her unborn child. Nastase was allegedly heard saying, “Let’s see what color it has. Chocolate with milk?” in Romanian when one of his players was discussing Williams’ pregnancy during a press conference. The former singles champion has a reputation for bad behavior and is nicknamed “Nasty.” His comments were made in reference to Williams’ fiancé, Alexis Ohanian, who is white. Williams - who announced her 20-week pregnancy last week - addressed Nastase’s remark in a text post on Instagram. [...] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/serena-williams-responds-to-ilie-nastases-racist-comments_us_58fe5b6ae4b018a9ce5dc6df
A black teen died following an encounter with police near Dallas. His death has just been ruled a homicide. - shot in head by police rifle - outrageous case Police have retracted earlier accounts that a vehicle was reversing toward officers in an “aggressive manner” when one of the officers opened fire, striking and killing 15-year-old Jordan Edwards in a Dallas-area suburb Saturday night. In a news conference Monday, Balch Springs Police Chief Jonathan Haber said that he initially “misspoke” and that the vehicle had begun to drive away at the time the officer opened fire. He questioned whether the shooting was necessary. “I unintentionally (was) incorrect when I said the vehicle was backing down the road … in fact I can tell you that I do have questions in relation to my observation (of) the video,” Haber said. “After reviewing the video, I don’t believe that (the shooting) met our core values.” Haber, who declined to release the video footage of the shooting as well as the name of the officer involved, said that evidence will be presented to a grand jury. Jordan is the youngest of the more than 330 people who have been shot and killed by police in 2017, according to a Washington Post database tracking such shootings. About 25 percent of those fatally shot by police this year have been black, and about 7 percent of those killed have been unarmed at the time they were shot. At least 10 people shot and killed by police this year were under 18. [...] Lee Merritt, an attorney for Edwards’s family, said at a news conference Monday that the family is calling on the police department to release the name of the officer as well as audio and video footage of the incident. “We are declaring war on bad policing. This has happened far too often,” he said. “We are tired of making the same rhetorical demands, of having the same hashtags; our community is fed up with the same tired excuses, once again offered by Balch Springs Police Department yesterday, that this was somehow the fault of the victims — teenage kids with no criminal records, with no motive to attempt to hurt anyone, with no evidence that they ever attempted to hurt anyone.” “Another family ripped apart by police brutality,” he wrote Sunday on Twitter. “There was absolutely no justification for this murder. We demand justice!” In a phone interview with The Post on Sunday night, Merritt said that Jordan, his 16-year-old brother and three other teenage boys were at a party on Baron Drive when they learned that police were on the way. They went to the car parked outside, saw flashlights and heard gunshots, Merritt said. As they climbed into the car, the teens apparently heard somebody yell profanities. Then they were being fired upon. They fled for about a block, Merritt said, before they noticed that there was smoke coming from Jordan’s head. The driver of the car, the boy’s older brother, stopped the car, and they flagged down an approaching police cruiser for help. Several of the teens played on the football team together. Jordan was going through spring training for next year’s season. “They’re never going to be the same,” Merritt said. “These kids are never going to be the same.” Merritt said that three bullets were fired into the car. They came through the driver’s side window, he said. Jordan and the four teens with him had not been drinking, according to Merritt. They were not cited for underage drinking and have not been charged with any crimes, he said. [...] https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/05/01/officer-fatally-shoots-15-year-old-boy-in-dallas-suburb/
Alton Sterling shooting death: Reports suggest no federal charges Reports: No federal charges in Alton Sterling shooting death Sterling was selling CDs outside a Baton Rouge convenience store http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/02/us/alton-sterling-shooting-death/
Ex-officer Michael Slager pleads guilty in shooting death of Walter Scott As part of a plea deal, two other federal charges and state charges will be dropped Slager killed 50-year-old Walter Scott as Scott was running away http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/02/us/michael-slager-federal-plea/
Georgia Wonders: Will Newcomers Dye the Suburbs Blue? JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — At first blush, this bedroom city of 83,000 a half-hour north of Atlanta might be mistaken for the perfect example of a white-flight Sun Belt suburb. It sits squarely in the congressional district once represented by Newt Gingrich, with excellent public schools and master-planned communities so pristine they could have been built by a model train aficionado. In 2015, the all-white City Council rejected the idea of expanding public transit out from majority-black Atlanta on the grounds that it “would increase high-density housing.” But something has been happening in Johns Creek — and, indeed, across much of the vast archipelago of cul-de-sac communities north of Atlanta that served as the launchpad for Mr. Gingrich’s 1994 Republican revolution. The promise of a suburban idyll has been increasingly attracting all kinds of people — many of whom are not white, and not Republican. Today, 24 percent of people in Johns Creek are of Asian heritage. Indian-Americans shop for saris at the Medlock Crossing strip mall and flock to the latest Bollywood hits at the multiplex. Chinese-Americans and food lovers of all stripes head to the Sichuan House, near the Target and Home Depot stores, for sliced pork ears in chili sauce and “tearfully spicy” mung bean noodles. [...] https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/03/us/politics/ossoff-handel-georgia-sixth-district.html
In Travis County custody case, jury will search for real Alex Jones - this and next two at http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=130629223 Alex Jones and his ex-wife, Kelly, will be locked in a child custody trial the next two weeks in Austin. Alex Jones’ lawyers will make the case that their client should not be judged by his on-air persona. Lawyers for Kelly Jones will maintain that Jones’ public outbursts suggest he is not a fit parent. April 16, 2017 At a recent pretrial hearing, attorney Randall Wilhite told state District Judge Orlinda Naranjo that using his client Alex Jones’ on-air Infowars persona to evaluate Alex Jones as a father would be like judging Jack Nicholson in a custody dispute based on his performance as the Joker in “Batman.” “He’s playing a character,” Wilhite said of Jones. “He is a performance artist.” But in emotional testimony at the hearing, Kelly Jones, who is seeking to gain sole or joint custody of her three children with Alex Jones, portrayed the volcanic public figure as the real Alex Jones. “He’s not a stable person,” she said of the man with whom her 14-year-old son and 9- and 12-year-old daughters have lived since her 2015 divorce. “He says he wants to break Alec Baldwin’s neck. He wants J-Lo to get raped. “I’m concerned that he is engaged in felonious behavior, threatening a member of Congress,” she said, referring to his recent comments about California Democrat Adam Schiff. “He broadcasts from home. The children are there, watching him broadcast.” [...] http://www.mystatesman.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/travis-county-custody-case-jury-will-search-for-real-alex-jones/rnbWzMHnFCd5SOPgP3A34J/
Alex Jones Will Never Stop Being Alex Jones After two decades toiling at the fringes of politics, Alex Jones and his Infowars media empire have architected the current moment and helped usher a president into office. Now, the only person standing in Jones' way is Jones. AUSTIN - It was the winter of 1997 and Alex Jones couldn’t stop getting punched in the face. [...] https://www.buzzfeed.com/charliewarzel/alex-jones-will-never-stop-being-alex-jones
Breitbart’s frustration with President Trump just boiled over Breitbart News cheered Donald Trump to victory in November but has been frustrated by some of Trump’s moves in office. Most notably, the hard-right site has been disappointed by the president’s failure to secure funding for the Southern border wall he promised during the campaign in a budget deal Republicans and Democrats recently struck. At Wednesday’s White House press briefing, Breitbart reporter Charlie Spiering got into a tense exchange with White House press secretary Sean Spicer. We have annotated the back-and-forth, using Genius. To see an annotation, click the yellow, highlighted text. To add your own, sign up for an account. [...] https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/05/03/breitbarts-frustration-with-president-trump-just-boiled-over/
In Minnesota's worst measles outbreak, a battle of beliefs over vaccines An evolving community in the big city of Minneapolis is fighting a dangerous virus -- and a battle of beliefs. The largest measles outbreak in the Minnesota city in 25 years, this April, affected 34 people primarily between the ages of 0 to 5, according to the Minnesota Department of Health. Eleven have been hospitalized. The majority, 29, of the measles cases were among Somali Minnesotans, according to the state health department, which has been working to improve vaccination rates in their community. State and local officials have been searching for any other people exposed to the virus –- potentially 3,000 more -- who may be unvaccinated and vulnerable, to try and stop the spread of the disease. [...] http://abcnews.go.com/Health/minnesotas-worst-measles-outbreak-battle-beliefs-vaccines/story?id=47155531
Stocks Surged As Trading Floors Watched 'Breaking' InfoWars Video. It Was Two Weeks Old, and Wrong. Traders and analysts are wondering if “Infowars [is] a site I have to start reading now” to gauge what the average person believes is true in the middle of a “propaganda war.” As a video circulated that appeared to partially absolve President Donald Trump in the administration’s Russian meddling scandal on trading floors on Thursday, stocks surged for the first time in days on the apparent breaking news. The video, it turns out, was actually two weeks old, misleadingly edited with the intention of falsely accusing former FBI director James Comey of perjury—and was initially aired by conspiracy website InfoWars on Thursday around noon. Trump wasn’t cleared. In fact, since the video had been around since May 3rd, nothing had changed at all. But by the time traders found out, the dollar index had spiked anyway. The fallout of the story is leaving analysts wondering how to absorb information in a market that is suddenly waiting on bated breath for the latest rumors to come out of the White House—even when those rumors are intentionally misleading or untrue. “The market is used to trading on rumors. There are always rumors of takeovers or bankruptcies. In those situations, when you bet on a rumor, you lose big time,” Adam Button, the chief currency analyst at ForexLive, told The Daily Beast. “With political rumors, they don’t have to be true.” In other words, the news can be fake, but the rally it creates in the stock market is very real. Button was one of the first to trace the bump in the American dollar back to InfoWars on Thursday. “It’s an unprecedented time. The market is getting a taste of what the post-truth world looks like,“ said Button. An InfoWars segment and article posted around noon titled “Breaking! Comey Caught Committing Perjury to Congress” shows Comey saying “he has not been pressured to close an investigation." The clip on InfoWars omits that the question, asked by Hawaii Senator Mazie Hirono, specifically asks Comey if the attorney general or Department of Justice has asked him to close the investigation, and doesn’t mention President Trump. The InfoWars story ends with the sentence “This story is developing,” even though Comey’s testimony had occurred 15 days ago. No further updates arrived. [...] http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2017/05/18/stocks-surged-as-trading-floors-watched-breaking-infowars-video-it-was-two-weeks-old-and-wrong the video: Comey Caught Committing Perjury To Congress? - and 5-18-17 full show https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEyYu4aJgiY This video proves that James Comey perjured himself to Congress claiming that no one had asked him to halt the investigation into the Trump/Russia connection. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OgDai05bkU
Slain DNC Staffer’s Family Orders Blabbing Detective to ‘Cease and Desist’ - at https://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=131520771 The family of slain Democratic staffer Seth Rich [ http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/dnc-staffer-s-murder-draws-fresh-conspiracy-theories-n760186 ] is threatening legal action against a private investigator after his "outrageous behavior" has given fuel to right-wing conspiracy theories about the unsolved murder of their son. An attorney representing the family of Rich, who was 27 when he was killed last July, sent a cease and desist letter Friday to Rod Wheeler, a Fox News contributor and former Washington, D.C., homicide detective who was employed by the family and earlier this week told a Fox affiliate that he believed police were covering up details about the crime. [...] Wheeler's contract with the Rich family prohibited him from speaking to the press without prior approval from the family, a clause he apparently violated when he spoke to Fox 5 D.C. Monday for a story that quickly went viral on the right. Rich's family also has demanded a retraction and apology from Fox 5 D.C. for the story, but has so far not received one. Wheeler has since completely recanted his story, both in the press and in a private message to Rich's family. The private investigator told other outlets the Fox reporter essentially put words in his mouth by giving him information that he then repeated in an on-camera interview. "That story on Fox 5 last night was inaccurate," he told BuzzFeed [ https://www.buzzfeed.com/claudiakoerner/the-private-detective-who-ignited-a-clinton-conspiracy ]. [...] http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/slain-dnc-staffer-s-family-orders-blabbing-detective-cease-desist-n762211
The Secret To Happiness Revealed - included in 12-28-16 Alex Jones Show Paul Joseph Watson talks about the death of Carrie Fisher and how now many people are completely unhappy no matter what the accomplish. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Y-f8VLzMdM
DarkMatter2525 https://www.youtube.com/user/DarkMatter2525/videos Featured Channels https://www.youtube.com/user/DarkMatter2525/channels recent not posted yet, chrono as uploaded: If Muhammad Replaced Trump (. . .) Jul 24, 2016 If the ideals of Islamism came out of Trump's mouth, how would the Left & Right react? If any Muslims do respond to this cartoon, I have a couple predictions: 1. Some will respond by saying that the verses are out of context (standard response), but notice that none of these verses are actually justified by their context, and 2. Some other verse will be presented that contradicts one of the verses I used, which proves nothing other than the fact that the Islamic texts in question are contradictory. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3D1sW7tu6-s You Can't Escape - Episode 8 of "Power Corrupts" ( https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv--V1yc2QDJi6hFNhur3iAsyFpXRtB8w - further to http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=123593680 ) Aug 28, 2016 You might be able to escape religion, but you can't escape what caused it in the first place. All you can do is try to be cognizant of it, and try your best to keep it in check. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dspHj0Cj2-g Always Cry Wolf Sep 28, 2016 Human beings often unite during tragedies, foregoing our petty differences. Imagine if we didn't require the tragedy. While "crying wolf" is considered bad, the title of this video refers to what happened at Yellowstone, and in that light, the title's meaning is "always strive for balance". During my 40 years of life, I have learned that attaining balance is the greatest solver of problems. Be neither excessive nor neglectful. I believe that is a good rule for the macro as well, for society, and for our planet. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVsVgAqV9WI Don't Expect A Terrible Hereafter Oct 25, 2016 I was challenged to make a meaningful animation without speech. Thanks to my friend, known as C0ct0pusPrime here on YouTube, for challenging me to do this a while back. I had a lot of ideas, but this one stuck with me the most. Life is filled with dark irony. The very thing you want the most, might actually end up being the thing you'd least want. If you're not mindful, you might find out too late. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_jijoIUi2A King Solomon Nov 28, 2016 Marriage should be between 1 man and 1000 women. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Zjjg7mmDN4 If Hitler Never Existed (. . .) Dec 21, 2016 This is basically a MUCH better version of "It's a Wonderful Life". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5TtDZlHqao The Horror of Your Desires Dec 29, 2016 If you somehow obtained ultimate power, the things you’d choose to do would show us far more clearly who you really are than you could possibly show us with your current limitations. You could choose to bend people to your will, even if only through threats and intimidation, or maybe you could enjoy life with us, help us, and teach us. The bible authors created a character in Yahweh who abuses his limitless power with wanton abandon, reeking of a crude tool of manipulation - not a loving, caring teacher. He is the ultimate bad guy, sold to us as the ultimate good guy - a monumental travesty of history. It certainly is a good thing that Yahweh is a fictional invention of ancient writers. My next animations will be about the life and times of King David, as found in 1st and 2nd Samuel (and a bit of 1st Kings). This animation was Episode 9 of my Power Corrupts series. Here’s a link to the full playlist of the Power Corrupts series: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pA5PlJiqOnk&list=PLv--V1yc2QDJi6hFNhur3iAsyFpXRtB8w - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv--V1yc2QDJi6hFNhur3iAsyFpXRtB8w https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqJBD5SosZI King David Jan 22, 2017 This is the beginning of King David’s story from the Bible, the books of Samuel. I’d like to animate the rest of the books of Samuel, but that would take an enormous amount of work, and not only would your support via Patreon be greatly appreciated, but would also attach your name to the project (DarkMatter Army or above). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdtV9kbs_fo David, Goliath, and the 200 Cyclops Sleeves Feb 20, 2017 The Sunday School version of David and Goliath usually ends after David slings his rock, and for good reason; the rest isn’t quite wholesome family entertainment. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZPhXoDI3F0 If Muhammad Became the President (. . .) Mar 17, 2017 If you dislike Trump, then you should probably dislike Muhammad 100x more. Oddly, it seems some people are confused on this issue. That confusion comes from the best of intentions, I'm sure, but it is ultimately self-defeating, and allows for tolerance of the intolerable. Please check the paragraph at the end of this video for elaboration. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yJqWCBq6GI God Judges The Amazing Atheist Apr 4, 2017 Finally, The Amazing Atheist meets his maker. Who do you think God should judge next? The Amazing Atheist's channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/TheAmazingAtheist The Drunken Peasants Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/user/DrunkenPeasants https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e19DYf2lRIw If Your Body Were a Religion Apr 11, 2017 Most of the arguments I see online about this revolve around attacking strawmen with relative privation and tu quoque fallacies. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pho9FMuBJgA A Dangerous Idea - next (last? - "Season Finale") one, #10, in Power Corrupts [ https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv--V1yc2QDJi6hFNhur3iAsyFpXRtB8w ] May 15, 2017 Bad ideas need special protections to propagate. Good ideas stand up to criticism. This doesn’t only apply to religion, but also to many other forms of dogma. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2L9RZYguI0Q
White House aims for Thursday signing of religious liberty executive order President Donald Trump has invited conservative leaders to the White House on Thursday for what they expect will be the ceremonial signing of a long-awaited—and highly controversial—executive order on religious liberty, according to multiple people familiar with the situation. Two senior administration officials confirmed the plan, though one cautioned that it hasn’t yet been finalized, and noted that lawyers are currently reviewing and fine-tuning the draft language. Thursday is the National Day of Prayer, and the White House was already planning to celebrate the occasion with faith leaders. The signing would represent a major triumph for Vice President Mike Pence—whose push for religious-freedom legislation backfired mightily when he served as governor of Indiana—and his allies in the conservative movement. The original draft order, which would have established broad exemptions for people and groups to claim religious objections under virtually any circumstance, was leaked to The Nation [ https://www.thenation.com/article/leaked-draft-of-trumps-religious-freedom-order-reveals-sweeping-plans-to-legalize-discrimination/ ] on Feb. 1—the handiwork, many conservatives believed, of Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, who have sought to project themselves as friendly to the LGBT community. Liberals blasted the draft order as government-licensed discrimination, and the White House distanced itself from the leaked document in a public statement. Pence and a small team of conservative allies quickly began working behind the scenes to revise the language, and in recent weeks have ratcheted up the pressure on Trump to sign it. The new draft is being tightly held, but one influential conservative who saw the text said it hasn’t been dialed back much—if at all—since the February leak. “The language is very, very strong,” the source said. [...] http://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/02/donald-trump-religious-liberty-executive-order-237888
Why avoiding the Girl Scouts is a ‘sane, balanced’ move - Cstholic site Crux Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City has reached a sane, balanced conclusion in deciding to transition his diocese away from the Girl Scouts. Available evidence shows women are much better off if they take sex seriously, understand its natural links with marriage and kids, delay sex at best until marriage, practice a faith, and avoid nonmarital parenting, abortion, and divorce. https://cruxnow.com/commentary/2017/05/03/avoiding-girl-scouts-sane-balanced-move/
The PLasma for Alzheimer SymptoM Amelioration (PLASMA) Study (PLASMA) This study is ongoing, but not recruiting participants. Purpose The PLasma for Alzheimer SymptoM Amelioration (PLASMA) Study: Intravenously-Administered Plasma From Young Donors for Treatment of Mild-To-Moderate Alzheimer's Disease https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02256306
Two existing drugs halt neurodegeneration in mice Researchers have made a major leap forward in the treatment of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, after identifying two existing drugs that prevented brain cell death in mouse models of neurodegenerative disease. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/317028.php
Science in America - Neil deGrasse Tyson - next two items are about this video (originally on Facebook) Apr 19, 2017 We offer this 4min video on “Science in America”, containing what may be the most important words Neil deGrasse Tyson has ever spoken. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MqTOEospfo
Sowing Climate Doubt Among Schoolteachers PAUL SMITHS, N.Y. — The Heartland Institute, a conservative think tank known for attacking climate science, has been mailing a slim, glossy book to public school teachers throughout the United States. The institute says it plans to send out as many as 200,000 copies [ http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/climate-change-skeptic-group-seeks-to-influence-200000-teachers/ ], until virtually every science educator in America has one. The book, “Why Scientists Disagree About Global Warming [ https://www.heartland.org/publications-resources/publications/why-scientists-disagree-about-global-warming ],” presents the false premise that the evidence for human-driven climate change [ http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/science/topics/globalwarming/index.html?inline=nyt-classifier ] is deeply flawed. To understand where the Heartland Institute is coming from, consider a recent comment by its president, Joseph Bast, who called global warming “another fake crisis” for Democrats “to hype to scare voters and raise campaign dollars.” The book was first published in 2015, to coincide with the Paris climate conference and influence policy makers. The second edition was released this year with an instructional DVD. Public school teachers are not the only ones on the institute’s mailing list. College educators are getting copies of the book, too. One academic in Albany told me that hers arrived in an envelope bearing the headline of a New York Times article about an investigation into Exxon Mobil for possibly lying about climate change. “I was in a rush, and all I noticed was the word ‘climate’ in a New York Times headline,” she said. “That made me open it rather than throw it out.” The cover letter inside, however, made the book’s premise clear. “Claims of a ‘scientific consensus’ ” on climate change, it read, “rest on two college student papers, the writings of a wacky Australian blogger, and a non-peer-reviewed essay by a socialist historian.” In fact, multiple surveys of the scientific literature show that well over 90 percent of published climate scientists have concluded that recent global warming is both real and mostly the result of human activity. [...] https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/27/opinion/sowing-climate-doubt-among-schoolteachers.html
"We are not creating a Terminator": Russia denies risk as Putin's 'robot army' is trained to shoot guns Posting a clip showing armed robot FEDOR in action, Deputy PM insists teaching the androids to shoot will help improve their motor skills and decision-making abilities http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/we-not-creating-terminator-russia-10237755
"We are not creating a Terminator": Russia denies risk as Putin's 'robot army' is trained to shoot guns Posting a clip showing armed robot FEDOR in action, Deputy PM insists teaching the androids to shoot will help improve their motor skills and decision-making abilities http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/we-not-creating-terminator-russia-10237755
New human rights to protect against 'mind hacking' and brain data theft proposed A response to advances in neurotechnology that can read or alter brain activity, new human rights would protect people from theft, abuse and hacking New human rights that would protect people from having their thoughts and other brain information stolen, abused or hacked have been proposed by researchers. The move is a response to the rapid advances being made with technologies that read or alter brain activity and which many expect to bring enormous benefits to people’s lives in the coming years. Much of the technology has been developed for hospitals to diagnose or treat medical conditions, but some of the tools – such as brainwave monitoring devices that allow people to play video games with their minds, or brain stimulators that claim to boost mental performance – are finding their way into shops. But these and other advances in neurotechnology raise fresh threats to privacy and personal freedom, according to Marcello Ienca, a neuroethicist at the University of Basel, and Roberto Andorno, a human rights lawyer at the University of Zurich. Writing in the journal Life Sciences, Society and Policy, the pair put forward four new human rights that are intended to preserve the brain as the last refuge for human privacy. “The question we asked was whether our current human rights framework was well equipped to face this new trend in neurotechnology,” Ienca told the Guardian. Having reviewed the rights in place today, the pair concluded that more must be done to protect people. “The information in our brains should be entitled to special protections in this era of ever-evolving technology,” Ienca said. “When that goes, everything goes.” The suggested new rights assert what the researchers call cognitive liberty, mental privacy, mental integrity and psychological continuity. ... [...] https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/apr/26/new-human-rights-to-protect-against-mind-hacking-and-brain-data-theft-proposed
Outed: Stephen Fry Explains Why Some People Believe Everything Donald Trump Says
from about half-down in yours, because Stephen Frey describes very well some reasons why Trump's misguided mental set led to his being elected on a platform having little to do with world reality .. yep, the Dunning-Kruger effect gets a mention, too .. also, this one of Fry's is very no bullshit ..
Stephen Fry on God | The Meaning Of Life | RTÉ One
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