Mike Flynn lied to the FBI and admitted under closed-door oath that he lied to the FBI and he pled guilty in court of lying to the FBI and he pled guilty A SECOND TIME in court of lying to the FBI and his conviction has not been overturned. This is no longer a justice department. | The Justice Department on Thursday submitted a request to the court to drop the criminal charges against Michael Flynn, abandoning a prosecution that became a rallying cry for Trump and his supporters in attacking the FBI’s Russia investigation. The move is a stunning reversal for one of the signature cases brought by special counsel Robert Mueller. It comes even though prosecutors for the last three years had maintained that Flynn had lied to the FBI about his conversations with the Russian ambassador in a January 2017 interview. Flynn himself admitted as much, and became a key cooperator for Mueller as he investigated ties between Russia and the 2016 Trump campaign.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/07/politics/michael-flynn-doj-dismiss-charge/index.html
https://apnews.com/ae1ad252bb13490db2ceffc5d17b6d92
They're dropping charges on a guy who has already pleaded guilty under oath and pleaded guilty in court and pleaded guilty in court A SECOND TIME. That's a level of corruption I've never even imagined. Mueller's investigation has officially gone down as one of the biggest failures in American history. We're witnessing the end of American democracy. We're very close to becoming a full authoritarian regime. Absolutely infuriating knowing that if Democrats win the Presidency (they won't, their dumb Democratic governors destroyed any chance of that by closing gun stores and churches and mandating arrests on ministers and preachers etc) they will close the door on all this and pretend it's all over and everything is fine and leave the Republicans alone. There must be a reckoning for everyone involved in this despicable behaviour, including Democrats who want to move on and ignore the past. FFS Trump has already announced today he's floating bringing Flynn back into the administration.
Republican heroes include war criminals like Eddie Gallagher and admitted traitors like Michael Flynn.
Michigan State House And Senate Republicans sue Gretchen Whitmer over state of emergency extension
https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/06/politics/michigan-state-house-senate-sue-governor/index.html
2011: Michigan Governor Snyder (Republican) Seeks Emergency Powers which led to the Flint Water Crisis: Republican Gov. Snyder is seeking emergency powers that would enable him to 1) unilaterally declare a "financial emergency", 2) disincorporate entire municipal governments, 3) dismiss elected officials with no replacement election to follow, 4) seize control of local civil services, 5) hand taxpayer money, services and powers to private, for-profit firms.
https://m.dailykos.com/stories/2011/03/08/954169/-Michigan-Governor-Seeks-Emergency-Powers
We've reached a point - obviously and egregiously exacerbated by Trump - where Republicans can't just "be." There always has to be some fight, some enemy, some violation of their rights that they have to do the stupidest possible thing to work against. We've reached a point where the fact that a governor is a Democrat and a woman are enough to cause protestors to descend on the state capitol with fucking assault weapons screaming for her death and the death of all Democrats literally because they want to get a haircut. They've worked themselves into such an insufferable lather that even a fucking pandemic isn't enough to satisfy their lust for armed conflict. Even literally every scientist saying "hey, if we don't do this a fuckton of us will die" isn't enough for them to get their heads out their fucking asses and fucking think for once. It's only about defeating the enemy, and that enemy is always the one with a D next to their name for reasons they'll come up with after they've murdered their family and friends with a preventable disease.
You heard it straight from the president himself: He wants to terminate health care for millions of Americans in the middle of a global pandemic. We can't let that happen.
https://twitter.com/JoeBiden/status/1258142107103092736
Nearly 3.2 million U.S. workers seek jobless aid, raising total layoffs since virus struck to 33 million.
https://ktla.com/news/nationworld/labor-department-to-announce-several-million-more-jobless-claims/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/nearly-32-million-workers-seek-jobless-aid-raising-total-layoffs-since-virus-struck-to-33-million/2020/05/07/1618037a-905f-11ea-9322-a29e75effc93_story.html
Former Vice President Joe Biden said Wednesday that if he’s elected president, he will reverse a rule issued by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos aimed at bolstering protections for students who are accused of sexual assault on university campuses. In a statement, Biden said the new rule was an effort by the Trump administration to “shame and silence” survivors of sexual assault. “It’s wrong,” Biden said. “And, it will be put to a quick end in January 2021, because as president, I’ll be right where I always have been throughout my career — on the side of survivors, who deserve to have their voices heard, their claims taken seriously and investigated, and their rights upheld.” The new rule issued Wednesday narrows the definition of sexual harassment and requires schools to allow those accused of sexual assault to cross-examine the victims. The rule is meant to deter victims of sexual assault from reporting the assault.
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/496518-biden-says-hell-reverse-devos-rule-to-bolster-protections-for-those-accused
Survivors deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, and when they step forward they should be heard, not silenced. Today, Betsy DeVos and Donald Trump published a rule that flies in the face of that belief and guarantees that college campuses will be less safe for our nation’s young people. Simply put: this new rule gives colleges a green light to ignore sexual violence and strip survivors of their rights. It lets colleges off the hook for protecting students, by permitting them to choose to investigate only more extreme acts of violence and harassment and requiring them to investigate in a way that dissuades survivors from coming forward. This rule fundamentally disregards student’s civil rights under Title IX, which has helped pave the way for millions of women to access education. Survivors and advocates have fought to hold schools accountable and give young people truly fair access to education. Today's rule rolls back the clock and reverses those hard-fought victories. Our young people deserve better. During the Obama-Biden Administration, I traveled to the University of New Hampshire — a school with one of the best programs to prevent sexual assault in the nation — to announce that colleges would have new guidance and support from our Administration on how best to prevent and respond to campus sexual assault. With that encouragement — and the It’s On Us campaign that President Obama and I launched — schools took great steps towards leveling the playing field for survivors and accused students. Working with survivors and advocates, we helped to bring this violence out of the shadows and required schools change their practices. Now, Trump’s Education Department — led by Betsy DeVos — is trying to shame and silence survivors, and take away parents’ peace of mind. It’s wrong. And, it will be put to a quick end in January 2021, because as President, I’ll be right where I always have been throughout my career — on the side of survivors, who deserve to have their voices heard, their claims taken seriously and investigated, and their rights upheld.
https://medium.com/@JoeBiden/statement-by-vice-president-joe-biden-on-the-trump-administration-rule-to-undermine-title-ix-and-e5dbc545daa
Gov. Doug Ducey fires the scientists who warn he's making a mistake by reopening Arizona
https://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/op-ed/laurieroberts/2020/05/06/arizona-not-ready-reopen-asu-ua-coronavirus-models-say-fired/5175510002/
https://triblive.com/news/world/arizona-gov-doug-ducey-accused-of-firing-scientists-who-say-he-shouldnt-reopen-the-state/
Colorado Republican Chair Ken Buck pressured local official to submit incorrect election results | Colorado Republican Party Chair Ken Buck, a U.S. representative from Windsor, pressured a local party official to submit incorrect election results to set the primary ballot for a state Senate seat, according to an audio recording of a conference call obtained by The Denver Post. “You’ve got a sitting congressman, a sitting state party chair, who is trying to bully a volunteer — I’m a volunteer; I don’t get paid for this — into committing a crime,” Eli Bremer, the Republican chairman for state Senate District 10, told The Post on Wednesday, confirming the authenticity of the recording. “To say it’s damning is an understatement.”
https://www.denverpost.com/2020/05/06/colorado-ken-buck-gop-primary/
Investors aligned with Donald Trump Jr. and Republican National Committee (RNC) co-chair Tommy Hicks Jr. have acquired a major stake in One America News Network (OANN), sources familiar with the deal told Vanity Fair. | "This is all about building a Fox competitor. Trump is really aiming to take down Fox," the person said.
https://www.salon.com/2020/05/06/donald-trump-jr-investing-in-far-right-oann-aiming-to-take-down-fox-report/
https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-allies-explore-buyout-of-conservative-news-channel-one-america-news-network-11578696767
The Trump Administration Has Illegally Reversed Nearly 100 Environmental Rules. What the NYT Fails To Note Is That Most Of The Reversals Have Been Overturned By Courts:
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/climate/trump-environment-rollbacks.html
Customers shot 2 McDonald's employees after being told to leave due to coronavirus restrictions
https://edition.cnn.com/2020/05/06/us/mcdonalds-employees-shot-coronavirus/index.html
A Deadly Bacteria Kills Olive Trees Across Southern Europe — Scientists in southern Europe are fighting a deadly pathogen that's killed millions of olive trees in Italy.
https://www.npr.org/transcripts/850964037
Researcher testifies to Congress that not a single state meets Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security criteria to reopen safely | Last month, Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security created guidance for governors looking to reopen their states, outlining four criteria for phased reopenings. According to the center, states should consider reopening when: 1. "The number of new cases has declined for at least 14 days; 2. "Rapid diagnostic testing capacity is sufficient to test, at minimum, all people with COVID-19 symptoms, including mild cases, as well as close contacts and those in essential roles; 3. "The healthcare system is able to safely care for all patients, including providing appropriate personal protective equipment for healthcare workers; 4. "There is sufficient public health capacity to conduct contact tracing for all new cases and their close contacts." Caitlin Rivers, a researcher from the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security who co-authored the document, spoke about safely reopening during a hearing with the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Wednesday and said that, while her comments were her own and did not reflect the university, there are no states that currently meet all of these criteria. She said that while some states have noticed a decline in the number of new cases over a two-week period, "there are no states that meet all four of those criteria." (Also noting that "Not all states have adopted these criteria.")
https://www.businessinsider.com/no-states-meet-criteria-to-reopen-johns-hopkins-researcher-2020-5
https://www.aei.org/research-products/report/public-health-principles-for-a-phased-reopening-during-covid-19-guidance-for-governors/
https://www.centerforhealthsecurity.org/our-work/pubs_archive/pubs-pdfs/2020/200417-reopening-guidance-governors.pdf
https://docs.house.gov/meetings/AP/AP07/20200506/110747/HHRG-116-AP07-Wstate-RiversC-20200506.pdf
No state will ever meet the criteria because you cannot repeatedly test 340+ million people at all times (test negative at noon, great, but could become infected a few hours later; the symptons are common symptons that people experience all the time, nobody is going to repeatedly run to the doctor to be repeatedly tested, you cannot be tested all day and all night for the rest of your life) and there will never be a vaccine and contact tracing is a joke (you test positive, you have no idea how long the virus has been in you and you've come into contact with hundreds of people in one week alone, perhaps in one day alone, and 99% of the people are strangers).
77 cell phone towers have been set on fire so far due to a coronavirus-19 5G conspiracy theory
https://www.businessinsider.com/77-phone-masts-fire-coronavirus-5g-conspiracy-theory-2020-5
Bad Sigh.....Joe Biden includes marijuana decriminalization in new ‘Plan for Black America’
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/05/06/marijuana/joe-biden-includes-marijuana-decriminalization-new-plan-black-america/
A member of the US Navy who serves as one of Trump's personal valets has tested positive for coronavirus, CNN learned Thursday, raising concerns about the President's possible exposure to the virus.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/07/politics/trump-valet-tests-positive-covid-19/index.html
Trump won't wear a mask in public because he's afraid he might look ridiculous and it will harm his reelection chances, report says
https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-face-mask-fears-wearing-in-public-hurt-reelection-ap-2020-5
SBA slashes disaster-loan limit from $2 million to $150,000 and shuts out nearly all new applicants | An emergency disaster lending program for small businesses has been so overwhelmed by demand that it has significantly limited the size of loans it issues, while blocking nearly all new applications from small businesses, according to people familiar with the situation. The Economic Injury Disaster Loan program is a long-standing Small Business Administration program that’s separate from the new Paycheck Protection Program, which has challenges of its own. Congress gave the disaster loan program more than $50 billion in new funding in recent relief bills to offer quick-turnaround loans to businesses slammed by the coronavirus pandemic. But by many accounts, it is failing spectacularly. After initially telling businesses that individual disaster loans could be as high as $2 million, SBA has now imposed a $150,000 limit without publicly announcing the change, said people familiar with the situation who were not authorized to speak publicly. Additionally, the agency has faced a backlog of millions of applications for the disaster loan program for the past several weeks, several SBA officials have said. The SBA has been so overwhelmed by demand that it is now allowing only agricultural interests to submit applications as it works through an enormous backlog. Key Republican senators had been pushing hard for farmers and agriculture companies to be able to tap the program, and they are now being prioritized over other prospective borrowers.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/05/07/sba-disaster-loans/
The Failing Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously overturned the convictions of two defendants in the “Bridgegate” scandal that snarled traffic on the world’s busiest bridge, upended New Jersey politics and doomed the presidential aspirations of Chris Christie, the state’s governor at the time. The Supreme Court judges are saying that evidence proves crimes but the wrong charges for those crimes were filed/prosecuted. In other words the Prosecutors need to re-prosecute with the the proper charges.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/07/us/supreme-court-bridgegate.html
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/05/07/supreme-court-bridgegate-decision-242344
How Joe Biden Can Defeat Trump From His Basement | It starts with a heavy focus on America’s most trusted media source, local news. To get to 270 Electoral College votes, the Biden campaign really needs to win three states — Pennsylvania Michigan and Wisconsin — that Hillary Clinton lost in 2016. It won’t be a whistle-stop tour, but Mr. Biden can still generate the news coverage he will need to win there. With his home TV studio, he can beam into morning shows in Milwaukee and Madison. With his telephone, he can call into popular Philadelphia and Pittsburgh radio shows and be interviewed by reporters and columnists at The Detroit News and The Lansing State Journal. He can blanket the media in those states before he sits down for dinner — and all from the comfort of his Delaware home. His campaign should analyze the primary media consumption habits of the voters they need to put together for a winning coalition. For voters under the age of 40, it’s on mobile screens and social media; for black voters, local TV news; for Latino voters, Spanish-language TV and radio news outlets like Univision, Telemundo and La Mega, along with English-language local media in metro areas with large Latino populations.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/07/opinion/joe-biden-trump-2020.html
"LISTEN TO WOMEN" should be the mantra, not "Believe Women."
A Pennsylvania man drove his vehicle through a crowd of first responders gathered to salute health care workers at Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital in Darby on Tuesday. Investigators reported the driver of the SUV was armed and threatened to harm people. None of the participants in the salute were reported to be injured. After running a red light, the man led police on a chase through town. However, the driver lost control after colliding with another automobile and flipped his vehicle onto its side. He was taken into custody by police. Authorities have not released the name of the individual.
https://www.newsweek.com/pennsylvania-man-ploughs-suv-through-crowd-first-responders-salute-nurses-parade-amid-pandemic-1502455
Senate fails to overturn Trump's Iran war powers veto
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/05/07/senate-trump-iran-war-powers-veto-243277
Reade said she told her therapist. She has been asked to have the therapist confirm this and/or provide notes from the session. She has declined to make the therapist or the therapist's notes available. The word of a credible therapist she was seeing would give her new story some credibility. The word of a credible therapist is even admissible in court. She's a thief, con-woman, and a liar. And that's before her multi-version story of Biden. Some people will abuse the system and some folks will refuse to independently judge accusations. She has taken advantage of those who care deeply about sexual assault, it's time to move on from this smear.
My big question is whether Judge Sullivan will agree to DOJ's motion. This is the same judge who in 2018 hinted he may sentence Flynn with jail time, more than the prosecution was calling for at the time. Sentencing was delayed to give Flynn time to consider further cooperation. Remember the DoJ is requesting the court drop charges against a convicted felon who pled guily twice in court and pled guilty under oath behind-closed-doors. The charges HAVE NOT BEEN DROPPED. The DoJ are requesting the court drop the charges. The judge will make that decision.
https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/after-all-of-that-the-department-of-justice-will-drop-the-criminal-case-against-michael-flynn/
I started reporting on Tara Reade’s story a year ago. Here’s what I found, and where I’m stuck. | Reade told me that she wanted me to think of this story as being about abuse of power, “but not sexual misconduct.” Her emphasis was on how she was treated in Biden’s office by Senate aides, who she said retaliated against her for complaining about how Biden touched her in meetings. “I don’t know if [Biden] knew why I left,” she said. “He barely knew us by name.” | Three aides whom Reade said she approached about her complaints in 1993 told the New York Times that they also dispute her account. “I never once witnessed, or heard of, or received, any reports of inappropriate conduct, period — not from Ms. Reade, not from anyone,” said Marianne Baker, Biden’s longtime executive assistant. “I have absolutely no knowledge or memory of Ms. Reade’s accounting of events, which would have left a searing impression on me as a woman professional, and as a manager.” | If I were an old friend of Reade’s and she told me this same story privately over the course of a year, I doubt I would question her account. The brain processes traumatic experiences differently, making it difficult for some survivors to share them as a linear narrative. And the personal nature of a sexual assault can saddle victims with feelings of shame and doubt. It’s not easy to talk about. Many sexual assault survivors never speak of the experience at all. But I’m not an old friend. I’m a journalist. Reade came to me because she wanted to share her story with the world, not just with me. It was clear in our conversations that she understood the difference. I listened to her, I interviewed relevant sources, and I returned to her many times in an attempt to get more information to help me find more corroboration. Reade’s latest allegation is far more serious and comes in a far more fraught political context. The story that both she and her corroborating witnesses are telling has changed dramatically. This leaves me — all of us — in an agonizing place. I’ve written many articles through the Me Too era. It’s unrealistic to demand “perfect” victims. And, like most who come forward with allegations of sexual misconduct or assault, Reade has suffered for speaking out. In several exchanges this year and last year, she’s shown me disturbing messages she’s received online. As my colleague Anna North writes, there has long been an ambiguity in the Me Too movement. The rallying cry has been to “believe women.” But the acts of journalism that have driven the movement forward have been built on extraordinary amounts of evidence: They usually include not just consistent corroboration but oftentimes multiple stories, stacked on top of each other. Taking on powerful men over these issues was unthinkable just a few years ago. It’s required herculean effort. | Reporters who’ve succeeded in forcing powerful men to be held to account relied on an incredible amount of reporting to do it. For example, Irin Carmon, who, along with Amy Brittain exposed Charlie Rose for an alleged decades-long pattern of sexual harassment, had pursued the story for years. When their exposé appeared in the Washington Post, it was built on accusations from eight women, three on the record. Carmon and Brittain found consistency across the women’s stories and strong corroboration of each account: | When we spoke a year ago, Reade told me the only named sources she could give me were her deceased mother and the friend I spoke to. A recently uncovered tape of her mom on Larry King Live appears to corroborate Reade’s claim that she was struggling in Biden’s office in 1993, but does not include an assault allegation. When I reconnected with the friend I spoke to last year, who had previously told me Biden had not assaulted Reade, she told me a version of the story that matched Reade’s latest account. This year, Reade said to Halper that she also told her brother about the alleged assault and harassment. He later told the Washington Post in an interview that he remembers his sister was upset in 1993 about Biden touching her neck and shoulders. He followed up with a Post reporter a few days later over text message to say Reade also said Biden “put his hands under her clothes.” Since then, a former neighbor of Reade’s, Lynda LaCasse, has come forward in an interview with Business Insider. She said Reade spoke about the harassment and assault claims in 1995. I asked Reade why she hadn’t mentioned LaCasse to me a year ago, or to Halper, or to the first few reporters she told about her assault allegation, including the New York Times, which was working on a deep dive into her story at the same time. She said LaCasse hadn’t seemed like a relevant source because she’d talked to her two years after the alleged incident took place. Reade added that she told reporters about two other anonymous friends later who hadn’t seemed relevant to her either. When asked a similar question by the Associated Press, which had been working on the story, too, Reade didn’t respond. If Reade had told a consistent story and shared all of her corroborating sources with reporters, if those sources had told a consistent story, if the Union piece had shaken loose other cases like hers, or if there were “smoking gun” evidence in Biden’s papers, her account might have been reported on differently in mainstream media a year ago. It is not fair to an individual survivor that their claims require an extraordinary level of confirmation, but it’s what reporters have found is necessary for their stories to hold up to public scrutiny and successfully hold powerful men accountable. So we are here. | When Halper asked Reade why she didn’t mention the assault allegation originally, she responded by blaming the media: | But that wasn’t the narrative I wanted. I wanted the truth. And I certainly had no qualms about the accusations being of sexual misconduct. Reporters at many outlets, including the reporters Reade spoke to, have not shied away from reporting on detailed sexual assault allegations. In the Me Too era, reporters have been aggressive in uncovering stories of powerful men who, for far too long, have abused and assaulted women with no consequences. | Reade herself says the complaint didn’t include the assault accusation, so finding the complaint — or failing to find it — would neither corroborate nor debunk the most serious allegation. | All of this leaves me where no reporter wants to be: mired in the miasma of uncertainty. I wanted to believe Reade when she first came to me, and I worked hard to find the evidence to make certain others would believe her, too. I couldn’t find it. | Many liberals have said now and during the Franken saga that the Democratic Party has held itself to a ridiculous standard. Donald Trump has admitted on tape to what Reade accuses Biden of doing and still denies the accounts of more than 20 women who have accused him of sexual misconduct. And given that the goal of beating Trump is paramount this fall, some see dwelling on an accusation that has yet to be definitively proven as a damaging distraction.
https://www.vox.com/platform/amp/2020/5/7/21248713/tara-reade-joe-biden-sexual-assault-accusation
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/12/us/politics/joe-biden-tara-reade-sexual-assault-complaint.html
https://www.vox.com/identities/2018/8/21/17760222/asia-argento-jimmy-bennett-sexual-assault-me-too
https://www.vox.com/2020/5/6/21246667/believe-women-joe-biden-tara-reade-sexual-assault-allegation
https://qz.com/1561639/why-it-took-so-long-to-expose-charlie-roses-sexual-harassment/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/eight-women-say-charlie-rose-sexually-harassed-them--with-nudity-groping-and-lewd-calls/2017/11/20/9b168de8-caec-11e7-8321-481fd63f174d_story.html
Her original story was heard, she was given the benefit of the doubt and considered credible. Then she said that story was wrong. Fool me once and such... If you want a second bite at the apple, you need evidence. Her claim is false. The "agonizing" vox article by Laura McGann is the closest a reporter will come to saying that. It’s very clear from the structure of the article. The author who interviewed Reade multiple knows is certain she’s lying. She hurt so many fucking people for her fifteen minutes. This could still cost Biden the election. She put the entire fucking planet at risk. She hurt Biden and his family. She hurt his supporters. She hurt all the women who vouched for Joe and made them targets for “rape apologia.” And she hurt all the women who this happens to for real and so much worse and can barely bring themselves to tell one other person for YEARS and who aren’t believed for various reasons. And who won’t be believed, because “what about Tara Reade”. What she did was evil. I’m sure she isn’t as a person, but this isn’t in my opinion a forgivable error in judgment. I still hold Ryan Grim more responsible, because I doubt she knew what she was getting herself into, and he did. He exploited her as well. This is the best article I’ve seen on the story so far. Take the time to read it and share it with everyone you know who may be on the fence about this. It provides additional insight on the story from last year, especially on the account of one of her “corroborating witnesses” who was a friend of hers who has been cited in every other major outlet. The reporter points out that one of her friends that is a corroborating witness, said in 2019 that it wasn’t that bad, or he didn’t go for “one of those touches” and she volunteered that information on her own will. One year later: “When I reconnected with the friend I spoke to last year, who had previously told me Biden had not assaulted Reade, she told me a version of the story that matched Reade’s latest account”. Reade also tried to sneak her way out of why she lied about the media not picking up her story in 2019 and this was the answer: “The only answer she gave was that she was speaking about the response to her claims ‘collectively’.” And… the most hilarious thing was that the reporter asked her about her tick tock tweets but “she declined to elaborate on what she meant in the tweet, directing me to a spokesperson”. I don’t care how many times she does another interview, I don’t find her credible, she’s been disingenuous on everything from the start and now she’s downright gaslitghting people on why the fact that she wrote “this is not a story about sexual misconduct” still fits her narrative, because she says sexual assault is abuse of power… true, but you don’t get to have it both ways if you just said the story is not about sexual misconduct and especially after you edited your medium post to say “not only is this a story about sexual misconduct”. I think if you were to give truth serum to the reporter and every other reporter from major outlets, they would tell us they don’t believe her, but they will all stop short of calling her out because of the damage it could be done to actual sexual assault survivors. She cancelled an interview with Chris Wallace (fox news) and another one with CNN's Don Lemon (who’s an actual victim of sexual assault) and Don said on the air that her first excuse was that she didn’t want to do it after Biden’s interview on MSNBC and then she claimed security concerns. But all of a sudden she’s going to be on another fringe outlet, in this case Megyn “Blackface” Kelly’s instagram account. Produced of course by Rich McHugh, who at this point is invested in the story and also tried to dig into the debunked 14 year old harassment account (before you say “he was Ronan Farrow’s producer”, he was also a producer for Bill O’Rilley, which tells you he’s in for the juicy headlines regardless of whether they are truth or not and doesn’t really care about sexual assault/harassment victims). So unfortunately there’s another cycle of this story on the horizon and Joe will be forced to answer the same questions again. (Oh and she's now represented by a Trump loving lawyer). This is the closest you will ever see a reporter calling her out. Nobody will explicitly say it because I'm sure they are all aware of the bad optics. They know if they call her out and every outlet starts calling her out, it will trickle down and cast doubts on every other genuine assault stories. This is why what she has done is incredibly damaging to the me too movement.
Biden has been working hard to try and prevent this from tanking the #MeToo movement. He has been telling people to listen to her, investigate her claims against him, all while denying then fully and completely. He is trying to lead by example. Always take these accusations seriously and investigate them. I can't imagine any way for him to be handling this better.
Trump’s political operation is expanding its legal effort to stop Democrats from overhauling voting laws in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The Republican National Committee and Trump reelection campaign are doubling their legal budget to $20 million as litigation spreads to an array of battleground states. With the virus likely to complicate in-person balloting in November, Democrats have been pushing to substantially ease remote voting restrictions — something the Trump campaign and RNC are aggressively fighting in the courts.
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/05/07/trump-democrats-voting-laws-243517
Overall, the patterns remain the same:
—Deaths remain roughly at a plateau, with daily fluctuations due to reporting issues
—Raw number of cases slightly declining but ~steady if you remove NY
—Tests increasing significantly
—Positive test rate declining, even if you exclude NY.
https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/1258506046596759553
Yep: I have been in and around DOJ since 1983. I have never seen a case dropped after someone has pled guilty and the underlying facts demonstrate beyond any shadow of a doubt he is guilty. This is simply a pardon by another name. A black day in DOJ history.
https://twitter.com/mrbromwich/status/1258484189869080577
On February 14th 2017, Trump talked to FBI Director Comey about Michael Flynn, asking him to “let this go” because he’s a “good guy.” Comey wouldn’t do it, so Trump fires him. Today, Barr did what Comey was unwilling to do. Trump has brought up Flynn apropos of nothing several times in the past few weeks indicating that he expected him to be exonerated soon. And spouting theories in direct agreement with his new defense team's theories. Then this dismissal is requested by a political appointee. He's not even pretending this is fair and impartial. Trump ordered this. Further prediction, when his political appointees take heat for this decision, Trump will immediately throw them under the bus.
"I am going to be frank with you, this crime is very serious,” the judge said. “I can’t hide my disgust, my disdain, at this criminal offence."
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/dec/18/trump-michael-flynn-judge-emmet-sullivan-sentencing
Someone will inevitably say "He can't cancel or postpone the election!" in reply to you, oblivious to the other things he couldn't do but did anyways. He just installed a crony to oversee the USPS. Surely they’ll destroy it, but do they destroy it to stop the mail in ballot option that might grow dramatically thanks to COVID, or do they make it ineffective and allow vote by mail knowing the ballots die within USPS custody?
Fascinating that it was the WH that suppressed these, not Schiff. There goes another Republican talking point....: After Being Delayed by White House for Almost a Year, Transcripts from Republican-Controlled House Intelligence Committee Russia Investigation (2017-2018) Released. | The transcripts released today richly detail evidence of the Trump campaign’s efforts to invite, make use of, and cover up Russia’s help in the 2016 presidential election. Special Counsel Robert Mueller identified in his report similar, and even more extensive, evidence of improper links between individuals associated with the Trump campaign and the Russian government. A bipartisan Senate investigation also found that Russia sought to help the candidacy of Donald Trump in 2016 | And the transcripts also show that during the transition period in late 2016, the incoming National Security Advisor Michael Flynn undertook efforts to undermine U.S. sanctions on Russia imposed by the previous administration over Russia’s interference in the election on Trump’s behalf. Flynn would later lie to the FBI about these efforts, and the President would try to pressure then-FBI Director Comey to shut down any investigation into Flynn. It would take the firing of then Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the later appointment of an unscrupulous Attorney General, Bill Barr, for the President to achieve his aim of seeking dismissal of the case against Flynn, and only after Flynn pled guilty to lying to the FBI.
https://intelligence.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1004
Steven Bannon: https://intelligence.house.gov/UploadedFiles/SB2b.pdf
Hope Hicks: https://intelligence.house.gov/UploadedFiles/HH22.pdf
Jared Kushner: https://intelligence.house.gov/UploadedFiles/JK25.pdf
Roger Stone: https://intelligence.house.gov/UploadedFiles/RS50.pdf
Donald Trump Jr: https://intelligence.house.gov/UploadedFiles/DT55.pdf
Just to put things in perspective: It took 8 years for the Iraq War to cost the country upwards of 2 trillion dollars. Trump blew through more than that in one month by trying to downplay coronavirus.
Amid historic unemployment, @JoeBiden will deliver an economic address across @nowthisnews platforms. Tune in at 12 PM ET on Friday, May 8 to NowThis' Twitter, Facebook, or YouTube to watch!
https://twitter.com/thematthill/status/1258505459046035456
I couldn’t sleep last night. I run, my wife runs, my daughter runs, my SON runs. This could’ve been me or him. The McMichaels are cowards. This was murder. Because he had more melanin in his skin. Does that sound ridiculous to you? It does to me. Call, text, run. Demand justice.
https://twitter.com/RenoWilson/status/1258507590691983360
Let’s voice outrage beyond posting his picture on social media. Among other things, District Attorney George Barnhill must RESIGN. Text JUSTICE to 55156. Dial 912-554-7200 to make your voice heard. Follow: @ColorofChange @Georgia_NAACP #JusticeforAhmaud #IrunwithMaud
https://twitter.com/ava/status/1258212658479656960
And while some don't think ideology matters, there's a slew of literature to argue that it very much does... and Biden's perceived moderate ways may be part of the reason he is leading Trump right now.
https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/12/politics/how-do-liberals-do-against-trump-2020-analysis/index.html
Today is the second anniversary of Melania Trump's "BeBest" anti-cyberbullying campaign. Trump spent the afternoon calling the Obama administration "human scum" and blasting the press as "thieves."
https://news.yahoo.com/trump-blasts-human-scum-as-doj-drops-flynn-case-215918436.html
One of the underplayed facets to me about 2016 campaign was that Trump was seen as more moderate than Clinton... https://news.gallup.com/poll/196064/trump-seen-less-conservative-prior-gop-candidates.aspx … Well, right now, Biden is seen as more moderate than Trump.
https://thehill.com/hilltv/what-americas-thinking/496596-poll-voters-see-biden-as-more-moderate-than-trump
Seven out of every eight people arrested for social distancing offenses in Brooklyn were Black, according to data from the borough prosecutor's office that adds to a debate over whether the enforcement recalls Stop and Frisk practices of the Bloomberg era.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/07/nyregion/nypd-social-distancing-race-coronavirus.html
Reporters are trained not to believe *anyone* without corroboration ("if your mother says she loves you, check it out"). That is not how many leading Democrats approached allegations of sexual assault until now.
White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany Called Trump Comments ‘Racist,’ ‘Hateful’ in 2015
https://www.thedailybeast.com/white-house-press-secretary-kayleigh-mcenany-called-trump-comments-racist-hateful-in-2015
On Wednesday, a small group of black people exercised their Second Amendment right to bear arms by walking to the state capitol building in Lansing, Mich., toting large rifles, much like the mobs of white anti-quarantine protestors did last week. The difference is, these black people weren’t there to intimidate lawmakers or cause a ruckus while holding symbols of hate like nooses and confederate flags. These citizens were there with one mission in mind: protect a black woman. Lansing City Pulse reports that State Rep. Sarah Anthony was escorted to an appropriations committee meeting in the state capitol building by at least three armed African Americans who volunteered their services after witnessing the chaotic (not to mention racist as fuck) events of last week. “We were all just appalled by the lack of support and lack of security that I had, that other legislators had, and the fact that a lot of the demonstrators last week were adorning many racist, anti-Semitic signage. I think it just triggered a lot of folks, especially African Americans,” Anthony said, noting that she didn’t ask for the escort but was happy to have them there.
https://www.theroot.com/armed-black-people-escort-michigan-lawmaker-into-state-1843314306
https://www.lansingcitypulse.com/stories/armed-citizens-escort-lawmaker-into-michigan-state-capitol,14339
After Being Delayed by White House for Almost a Year, Transcripts from House Intelligence Committee Russia Investigation Released Transcripts Reaffirm Mueller’s Findings That Russia Interfered to Hurt Clinton and Help Trump, the Campaign Invited and Made Full Use of Illicit Russian Help, and Trump Lied to Cover It Up White House Would Not Allow Release of All Transcripts for More Than a Year By Holding Up Declassification Process Until this Week | In June of 2016, a Russian delegation offered dirt on Donald Trump’s rival—presidential candidate Hillary Clinton—to the highest levels of the Trump campaign, and did so in writing. Donald Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr., accepted that offer, and then set up a secret meeting between the Russian delegation, himself, Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, and Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, to discuss that illicit help. When news of the meeting was about to break, Trump and his son drafted a false statement for the press together in order to cover up the true purpose of the meeting. This written offer of illegal help by the Russians and its acceptance by the President’s campaign, and the secret meeting that followed, provide some of the most damning and direct evidence of the President’s to make use of Russia’s assistance in the election.
https://intelligence.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1004
I had to fire General Flynn because he lied to the Vice President and the FBI. He has pled guilty to those lies. It is a shame because his actions during the transition were lawful. There was nothing to hide!
https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/937007006526959618?s=21
Two Americans died of Ebola: They said Barack Obama should resign. Four Americans died in Benghazi: They had Hillary Clinton testify for 11 hours, held 33 hearings, and launched a multiyear probe. Donald Trump presiding over 75,000+ Americans dead: They cheer.
A 1996 court document from Tara Reade’s ex-husband doesn’t implicate Biden directly. Like most other evidence in this story that’s falsely spun as “corroboration,” this undermines Reade’s case rather than bolsters it. This isn’t corroboration of a rape/assault/harassment allegation. We already know Reade claims she had problems working in Biden’s office. The question is whether Reade was sexually harassed and/or sexually assaulted, and this document provides zero corroboration of that, it's moot, it's her husband saying, "she told me", and his court declaration explicitally says her judgment was not trustworthy. Just last year she claimed any touching was nonsexual, that other people in the office were mainly to blame instead of Joe Biden and that he probably didn't even know why she left his office. That does not sound easy to reconcile with her new story that he himself sexually assaulted her, reduced her duties, then fired her when she did or didn't file a report. Enough of this already fake news media, stop reporting lies already.
She’s worthless. Like everyone in the administration. She’s also a birther. So odd how the media won’t talk about that.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/07/politics/melania-trump-be-best-anniversary/index.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBnjVaHtmaA
Father and son charged in the killing of black Georgia jogger, Ahmaud Arbery, after footage sparked outrage | Footage of a young black man who was fatally shot by a white man in Georgia ignited outrage across the political spectrum, with former vice president Joe Biden comparing it to a lynching and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) calling the shooting “absolutely horrific.” | Gregory McMichael, 64, a retired police detective, saw Arbery jogging and believed he looked like a suspect in break-ins in the neighborhood, according to a police report. A local news report found only one burglary was reported to police between Jan. 1 and Feb. 23. McMichael called his son, Travis McMichael, 34, and they armed themselves with a handgun and shotgun, respectively. They chased Arbery in a truck, according to the report, and Gregory McMichael told police that he shouted to Arbery, “Stop, stop, we want to talk to you,” before, according to their statements, they pulled up beside him in their truck.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/05/07/killing-ahmaud-arbery-draws-condemnation-calls-prosecution
Sigh.......Thus began Joe Biden’s speech during a glitchy, stilted “virtual town hall” set in Tampa, Florida so plagued by technical problems that made the former vice president’s event look like it was run by local seniors attempting Zoom for the first time. The YouTube event began with a series of Florida politicians attempting to introduce Biden — when their livestreams worked. Florida Democratic Party Chair Terrie Rizzo’s speech was marred by lag and audio glitches. Rep. Charlie Crist’s (D-Fla.) video abruptly cut out as he was speaking. For a long stretch between speakers, the video was simply of a man identified as DJ Jack Henriquez — who appears to be this local Tampa musician and entertainer — grooving to some tunes amidst flashing disco lights. | This might all seem silly — and it obviously pales in contrast to the ongoing federal meltdown as the coronavirus kills tens of thousands of Americans, or even to President Trump’s irascible and falsehood-filled White House press conferences. But Trump’s campaign has invested heavily in its digital operation, and just launched a $10 million ad campaign to paint Biden as a doddering old man (as well as tie him to China). If Biden and his team can’t figure out how to up their digital game, that attack may cut deep.
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/xg8q9d/am-i-on-joe-biden-just-did-a-virtual-town-hall-from-tampa-and-it-didnt-go-so-well
Tara Reade is being represented by a prominent lawyer and political donor to Trump’s 2016 Republican campaign. Not even "the left" want to defend or fund her anymore
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